Arthur Returns
by SMNJ
Summary: When Arthur finally returns from his watery grave, Merlin and his eccentric companion Essie are none the more excited... but what brought him back? What terrible dangers have convinced the mysterious forces that Arthur should return from behind the veil? What kind of danger is Camelot (now turned small town Cameron) in peril of? To be updated every Tuesday.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but Essie and the idea. Don't sue me, thank. (this goes for the entire story)**

"How long has it been, Granddad?" she asked again. Merlin looked up, his eyes weary and tired.

"Soon, Essie," he sighed, biting more out of his bread.

"Tell me a story, then?" she asked ruefully, setting her olive-skinned face in her hands as she leaned forward on the rustic wood table. Merlin sighed, glaring at her teasingly, a small smile hidden under his white beard.

"I already have- I've told you every story I've got!" he protested, taking another bite from the cheese as well.

"You've lived over 1000 years, and that's all you've got? C'mon. You must have one more story."

She was nearly 21 years old. She was grown and well ready to move out of her hubby lodge, and go seek a career, seek a life. But she was stubborn as a rock, Essie was. She'd never abandon the Lake- it was part of her.

When Merlin had appeared, she had saved his life. A truck was barreling his way and she had lunged out and pushed him out of the way. Invited him in. And they had stuck ever since.

Of course, it had nothing to do with the fact that she happened to live right next to the Lake.

"Well… there is one story," he started. Her cinnamon eyes widened considerably. She knew everything about Merlin and where he came from. Sort of just came out, really. She had a way with words, despite the fact that she rarely used them before Merlin's arrival. She spilled her guts and somehow caused Merlin to do the same.

Before he knew it, he admitted to everything. Arthur's death, his immortality. His destiny. The Dragon, his friends, his loved ones.

And she believed every word of it.

"Tell, tell!" she quipped. He sighed and smiled at her through his beard, looking back down at his food as he ate it.

"There was to be a joust-"

"-I've heard of those-"

"-And Arthur was angry because he felt everyone gave him special treatment, due to the fact that he was the Prince-"

"-Typical-"

"-And so he decided to secretly joust under false pretenses, so that no one would know it was him-"

"-So he got someone from the village?"

He was indifferent to the fact that she kept interrupting. Sure, it was his story, but she got excited. He would do the same if it were Gaius telling him.

"Yes, precisely-"

"Merlin, do tell me the story of his returning, again?"

He stopped at her words. He looked up from his food, his eyes stern. It was obvious that she hadn't meant to blurt it out. Her eyes were wide and apologetic, but at the same time, her vivaciousness was shining through. Merlin smiled to reassure her it was okay.

She was a child at heart.

"Alright," he said softly, before sighing again (he did that a lot around her) and taking a deep breath to start his tale-

There was a loud splash outside. Essie looked up quickly. She knew the Lake like she knew the lyrics to her favourite songs. It was usually quiet and peaceful. This wasn't normal.

Merlin looked up as well, extremely silent.

There it was again-

Essie was on her feet, and ran to the window. Like a five year old child, she pulled back the lace and peered down at the lake.

"Merlin," she breathed, "Merlin, I see something."

Merlin got up slowly, his old heart beating like a young man's. He stepped slowly over the cold wood floor, to where Essie was standing. He peered past her shoulder.

There was a flash of blue light. Something was erupting from the middle of the lake.

Essie turned slowly to Merlin, clear excitement bursting, her skin almost breaking.

"King Arthur," she mouthed.

Merlin stayed frozen, before Essie jumped to her feet off the sofa under the window, and pulled gently at Merlin for the door.

Merlin snapped out of his shock, and gripped Essie tight. She supported him as she grabbed the blanket on the couch, threw it over him, and they both went as quickly as they could to the door out into the cold evening.

Merlin stumbled over Essie but she didn't mind. She was as excited as he, maybe even more. For her, it was like all the fairy tales and fables were coming to life in front of her. And she wanted nothing more.

It was about time something of a miracle took place in her life.

Merlin was even more taken. He was almost more afraid than excited- What if Arthur didn't remember Merlin? 1000 Years is a lot of time. He wouldn't be able to take it anymore. It would be like another death of a friend, and he had had enough of those.

They almost fell together at the shore of the lake, and by then the blue light was intense. There was a strong beam of light causing gray matter to swirl above the fiasco over the lake, bolts of lightning shooting at the now choppy rough waves.

"Merlin- Merlin, where is he?" yelled Essie over the howling wind.

"He must be rising from the middle of the Lake!" yelled Merlin, his voice raspy and low, "We must get there Essie, we have to bring him ashore!"

"Well yeah, we don't want the King back from the dead drowning now, would we?!" she screamed, as she helped Merlin to the dock where her boat was situated, bobbing up and down in the rough waters.

She helped Merlin in, clambered in herself, and she set the jets full speed towards the center of the lake, where there was the most activity.

They soared over the large waves, ignoring the mist that felt like needles on their faces as they finally drew as close as they could without turning over the boat.

The sky that was once a smooth light gray was now an angry shade of black and indigo, the gray masses of clouds contrasting against the magical sight.

The very center was as bright a blue as Merlin's eyes had once been. He was panting and had to keep blinking out water from his eyes that weren't all due to the sharp harsh wind. He fought hard to keep them open.

Eventually, a figure began to rise out of the water. It was a strong, and burly figure, one that Merlin immediately recognized despite the hundreds of years it's been.

"Arthur!" he bellowed over the noise. But the figure didn't stir.

"Merlin…" started Essie, as she got up in the rocking boat. She had practically grown up around boats, and she had mastered keeping her balance. She squinted, before shouting, "Merlin, he's there; I can see him!"

"Where?"

"He has sandy hair- and blue eyes, gleaming blue eyes!"

"Yes, yes! We must reach him!"

"Grand dad, he's about to reach us!"

The figure had risen completely out of the water, and was stumbling through the air. He didn't seem to be fully conscious.

"Merlin!" Screamed Essie, as the figure stumbled alarmingly close to the boat. Merlin and Essie both reached out at the same time, and caught his heavy wet body before he hit his head on the ridge of the boat.

They hauled him in as the wind began to die down and the clouds began to clear almost immediately after Arthur had fallen into the boat. There was a loud popping sound like the cork out of a bottle, and everything was as still and peaceful as before, like nothing had ever happened.

"Full speed, Essie!"

"Yes, sir!"

Merlin hauled Arthur's head onto his lap, wiping the water and longer hair out of his eyes. He had been perfectly preserved. Everything was the same about him except the being dead part. He was barely conscious.

"Arthur, Arthur, are you alright?"

"Merlin…?"

"Yeah, yeah it's me," Merlin felt like a new man as he looked down to the young face of his once long gone friend.

"Merlin, we're- MOTHER OF GOD!"

Merlin looked up quickly to the bewildered Essie, whose eyes were even wider than before, if possible. She was in total shock.

"W-what is it?"

"You! You're- different!"

Merlin reached to his face. He hadn't noticed his beard was considerably shorter, and some of his wrinkles had disappeared.

"Merlin, you're younger! You're becoming younger!"

Merlin's younger face broke into smiles as he looked back down at Arthur. He was gaining some consciousness.

"Quickly," ushered Merlin, as he looked back up at Essie's still shocked face, "we can't dump everything on him now- we must take it slowly. Hurry, before he is fully awake."

She nodded as she stumbled to help him, struggling to help raise Arthur's heavy body.

They almost dropped him on several occasions, and a few times he even protested until they finally reached inside and dumped him on the couch.

Arthur groaned, slowly opening his eyes.

"Merlin?" he grumbled, now more audibly.

"It's alright, Arthur," assured Merlin, who was crouched by his side, "everything is alright."

"I- I died," Arthur stated, as he rubbed his eyes, finally focusing in Essie who was standing just behind Merlin.

"You," Arthur suddenly called, pointing clumsily at her, "You- maidservant."

"I beg your pardon!" quipped Essie, her hands on her slim waist, "I most definitely am not your maidservant, or anything otherwise!"

Merlin glared at her and she just shrugged with an accusing stare at Arthur, who was confused by her words. She was rather rash sometimes.

"Merlin… Merlin, what's happening-?"

"Arthur, calm down, get some rest."

"M-my whole body hurts. Throbbing"

"I can fix that," blurted Essie, who hurried to the cupboard of the kitchen just behind her, around the island and its various drawers filled with rubbish.

She came back with a spoon and small bottle of pink thick liquid.

"What is it?" grumbled Arthur, who was glaring as hard as he could manage at Essie. He was offended by her.

"Tylenol," she answered, "it's a painkiller- it'll take any pain away."

He looked to her suspiciously, then glanced at Merlin, who nodded reassuringly. Some more of his wrinkles had disappeared and his hair was even darker.

"It's cherry," she added, as she offered the spoonful of liquid she had poured so clumsily.

Slowly, not taking her eyes of her square shaped face which was still eager as ever, he opened his mouth, not moving otherwise, which made her sigh. She reached out over the drawing table and spilled the thick liquid slowly into his ready mouth.

He nodded slowly, before glancing at Merlin, and said, "I- I'm tired."

At this, he fell backwards into the cushions and started to snore.

Essie looked at the back of the box of the medicine.

"Ah," she nodded, looking to Merlin, who was even younger already. He looked to be in his mid-thirties, "It has some sleep in the mix. He'll be out to regain his energy."

"Good," agreed Merlin, before getting up with a renewed vigour and grabbed a blanket which had fallen off the couch previously and threw it on Arthur.

He turned to Essie, and there was a short silence. Suddenly a full out laugh broke out on his face.

He ran over to Essie and grabbed her, twirling her around (which he had most definitely never done before), as she laughed along with him, the situation finally dawning on them and settling in.

"He's back!" They both whispered loudly over Arthur's snores.

"The King has returned!" celebrated Merlin, as he took Essie's face in his hand and kissed her twice on her cheeks. She laughed even more along with him.

"King Arthur returns to the living!" She beamed.

They didn't sleep very well that night. They were too busy partying quietly, as Arthur continued to snore on the old couch.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Essie woke up extra early. Dawn had just broken out over the horizon she could see from her bed. She wasted no time jumping out of bed, hardly bothering to grab her robe as she skipped down the stairs in her shorts and tank top.

She came in on Merlin, who was examining himself in the mirror which hung over the cabinet at the foot of the stairs.

He was wearing long black hair like a hat, and his eyes, which had turned gray and old over the years, were back to a startling bright blue. His ears and chin that were once hidden under his hair and beard were back to sticking out oddly.

He turned to Essie, who stared at him in happy disbelief. They had settled that he must be growing younger to appear the same to Arthur, or maybe it was just the magic of his coming back affecting Merlin too. With his coming back came Merlin's own return as well.

"Granddad no more," addressed Essie, bobbing a curtsy like from Merlin's times, "you need a haircut."

Merlin chuckled as he nodded, agreeing as he ran his fingers through his hair. He still couldn't believe it.

"How is he?"

"Still asleep," answered Merlin.

Essie nodded, "Obviously."

They both peered around the narrow corner. He looked comfortable enough.

"Food?"

"Yeah."

They made their way towards the kitchen quietly, and tried to set up breakfast without waking Arthur.

They realised, however, that he was totally out and noise wouldn't bother him, because as Merlin had grown younger, he had regained his amazing ability of clumsiness. He had dropped a pan on the floor which made the loudest noise, but Arthur didn't stir or even snort in his deep sleep.

Essie thus started to shout really loudly, yelling ridiculous things at Arthur. He didn't as much as twitch at this noise.

Merlin laughed the entire while as he busied himself in preparing the eggs.

After breakfast, they spent the day lulling around waiting for Arthur. However, the wait was a long one. He didn't wake up, even after their several attempts.

Eventually they decided there was no waking him up and all they could do was wait.

This wait lasted three whole days. Eventually, they weren't even waiting. Arthur was just there as they continued on with what they were previously doing, though with more air of excitement and hope.

Three days later around noon, Merlin was out chopping wood just because he could now. Essie was preparing lunch, with Elvis blasting from the stereo she had raised hard earned money to buy.

It was to this that Arthur finally began to rise to. He slowly began to open his eyes, moving slower than a drunk snail. His vision was excessively blurry and his head was pounding dully.

He began to turn in his position, two fingers at his temples as he slowly opened his eyes more and more. He blinked a few times, and the first thing he saw almost caused him to fall off the couch.

Essie was dancing passionately, singing along on her wooden spoon as she jumped around the table gathering the ingredients for her macaroni.

_The warden threw a party in the county jail._

_The prison band was there and they began to wail._

_The band was jumpin' and the joint began to swing._

_You should've heard those knocked out jailbirds sing._

_Let's rock, everybody, let's rock._

_Everybody in the whole cell block_

_Was dancin' to the Jailhouse Rock._

She was moving her hips quite excessively as she aggressively poured and stirred macaroni and cheese powder into the pot on the stove. Arthur was slightly frightened, and had no idea what was going on, and was too groggy to come up with any sort of solution or anything of the sort.

_Spider Murphy played the tenor saxophone_

_Little Joe was blowin' on the slide trombone._

_The drummer boy from Illinois went crash, boom, bang, _

_The whole rhythm section was the Purple Gang._

_Let's rock, everybody, let's rock._

_Everybody in the whole cell block_

_Was dancin' to the Jailhouse Rock._

She jumped up and down and dawned an air guitar, strumming it vigorously as she whipped her long hair around.

"…Merlin!" yelled Arthur feebly over the music. He had quite honestly seen enough.

Ignoring the rest of the song, Essie turned around quite suddenly, almost dropping the box she was holding.

"Arthur! You're awake!" she shrieked, as she reached to the remote and switched off the song. She ran to the door behind her, which was wide open to the forest outside. The lake was on the other side of the house.

"Merlin! Merlin, he's awake!" she screamed. There was a dull thud, and hurried footsteps over moist ground. Merlin stumbled through the door, stopping before Essie. They both turned to look at a confused and groggy Arthur.

"Arthur!" he said finally, before rushing and dropping by the couch, hugging him. Arthur was even more confused, and just patted his back awkwardly a few times, before Merlin let go.

"What- what happened?" he asked again, rubbing one of his eyes and gritting his teeth.

"We will explain everything to you, we will," promised Merlin, "But there's a lot for you to absorb, so- so get a bit more rest, and all in due time."

Arthur usually would have demanded to know, as King, but he was much too exhausted to protest. He merely glanced Merlin up and down as he leaned backwards into his pillows.

"You need a haircut," he scolded feebly. Merlin just laughed and so did Essie from behind him, just as three nights ago when they had brought him here.

"We said you'd enjoy the display of me cutting it for him, so we let it grow until you wake up," she chided. Arthur looked past Merlin's shoulder at Essie. He suddenly shut his eyes and covered his eyes with his pale hands, shouting.

"Go- put on some clothes, woman, you're almost naked!"

"What?"

Essie looked down at her sport shorts and Dr. Who t-shirt. She frowned.

"I get it, you're not used to so much skin," she tutted, "it's alright, I'm not totally naked, this is normal."

"You like to walk around like that, normally?"

"No, well-" she hesitated, "I wouldn't say no to being able to do that, but that would- yeah, that would be weird."

"Essie, just go cover yourself up a bit, he's not used to it."

"But it's so hot!"

Merlin turned to her and glared at her sternly, like the old man he once was. He still had the same wise stern air about him, according to her.

She sighed.

"Fine," she grumbled, "But remember, Merlin, you're not an old man anymore, you can't pretend you're my guardian and order me around."

"Sure."

"You heard me!" she warned, her voice fading as she turned the corner and hurried upstairs.

Merlin chuckled as he turned back to Arthur.

"Who's she?"

"A good friend. You can trust her," he assured.

Arthur nodded, trusting his words completely, despite a lot that had happened last time they had seen each other, "Where am I?"

"You're safe. Much has happened since-"

"Me dying?"

Merlin remained silent.

He reached to the table that was behind him, "Are you hungry?"

"Starving."

"Here, have an apple- Essie should have some food prepared soon."

"Didn't look like it," informed Arthur, as he took a bite, "five minutes ago she was dancing to some ridiculous tune."

Merlin laughed.

"Yeah, she does that a lot."

"What do I do a lot?" came her voice. She ascended the stairs into the main hall. She had changed into yoga pants and was still wearing her T, and she was just finishing up her ponytail with a pink scrunchie.

She was slightly dis-shelved and you could tell she hurried to get back downstairs as fast as she could, not to miss a thing.

"Dance while you cook," answered Merlin, turning to her.

"Yeah, I do that a lot," she sighed, "I sweat all over my food, then eat it."

Arthur looked at her oddly. She laughed.

"Not really, I swear… maybe a little," she grimaced, "gosh, I'm disgusting."

Merlin chuckled as well, before turning to her, then spotting the fuming pot on the stove.

"Essie, the food!"

She turned, then scurried over to it quickly, cussing foul words Arthur barely ever heard before but could tell were probably extremely rude.

"What- what is that?"

"It's called a stove," Essie answered. She was fanning an oven mitt at the macaroni, before lifting it and pouring the fuming orange stuff into a bowl she had already prepared.

"Macaroni and cheese, a personal favourite, ready-made and cooked by yours truly."

"What's-?"

"A delicacy- you don't need to know much more, really."

Arthur swallowed his questions. Talking had already robbed him of a lot of energy he had gained. Merlin patted his shoulder.

"It's alright if you to feel odd; it's been a long time, old friend."

"Yeah, how long exactly?"

Merlin didn't answer.

"Merlin?"

Essie hastily poured some mac & cheese in an orange bowl and offered it to Arthur, almost tripping over the table between them.

"Try it, you'll love it."

"Wh-what?"

Arthur had never met anyone remotely like the crazy girl in front of her. Her long dark hair was pulled into a dis-shelved pony tail reaching her mid-back, and her olive skin made it seem like she was part of the strange log house he was in.

She looked flamboyant and bubbly, but at the same time, a very mature, serene air about her like she had grown in a hundred years in a short span, then shrunk back to the childish manner she was constantly in.

"You gonna take it or not? My arm's getting tired."

Arthur snapped out of his thoughts, and robotically opened his mouth. She stuffed the entire hot spoonful in his mouth. He almost gagged.

Merlin patted his back lightly, before re arranging his pillows to make him more comfortable in an upright position. He was so used to serving him it was like the past thousand years hadn't happened.

"This is… this is good."

"Ha-ha, take that, medieval bitches-"

"Essie!" scolded Merlin.

Essie grew red before nodding silently and subtly offering more to Arthur, as she sat at the foot of the couch and spooned up some more mac & cheese.

As Essie fed Arthur, Merlin tried to figure out what to do. He couldn't just dump it all on him; that could drive him insane. He couldn't not tell him anything either. That would make it worse when he'd find out by himself.

Essie obviously could tell what he was thinking, because she cleared her throat and said, "so… now that you've eaten your food, I think now would be the best time to tell you-what's going on."

She looked to Merlin, gesturing for him to start.

Merlin's mouth felt dry but eventually decided it was now or never.


	3. Chapter 3

"Yes, um," he started nervously. Arthur was looking at him expectedly. Essie moved the blanket more on him, as they didn't have anything for him to wear but the wet black pants he was wearing and bare chest.

"So- we need you to understand, Arthur, that- well- you died."

"Yeah, I know that- why am I back?" he said dully, looking at Essie, expecting more macaroni. She rolled her eyes as she sighed, stuffing more in his mouth a little too hard. Merlin smiled briefly before continuing.

"Well- your destiny is to come back, when Camelot needs you. Thing is- it's been- well-"

Merlin took a breath, screwing his eyes shut.

"…It's been a thousand years."

Merlin opened one of his eyes, expecting a huge reaction from Arthur. Arthur, however, was silent. He had stopped mid chew as he took this in.

"Wait," he said suddenly, swallowing, "a _thousand_ years? How is that even possible?"

Essie came in this time.

"Camelot was a mighty reign," she put in, "And it's still really well known-"

"Wait, Camelot is- it's no more?"

"No, no, it is," she said quickly, glancing at Merlin quickly who was warning her with a look to go slowly, "but- just under different terms, and names. Lately, what was Camelot is now a small town just off the lake here, in Avalon Island. It's called Cameron."

"Cameron," he repeated. Essie nodded, slowly. There was a long, uncomfortable silence. Arthur looked like he wanted to have a tantrum. Merlin wondered if he would. Essie just looked sort of mortified.

"Macaroni?" offered Essie suddenly, holding up another spoon awkwardly. Arthur looked up at her, and swatted away the spoon. She didn't say anything. She merely got up and went to the kitchen, looking meaningfully at Merlin. She had tried.

"Listen, Arthur, I know this is a lot-"

"Merlin, shut up," he interrupted, holding up his hand to silence him.

He's about to throw a tantrum, thought Merlin frantically.

Arthur felt like he had been punched in the stomach. He knew the feeling well, it had happened on several occasions.

"Wh- where's- I mean- what about Gwen?" he asked slowly. Merlin hung his head.

"I'm the only one left, Arthur," He said quietly.

There was a longer silence. Essie was in the kitchen, leaning on the island with her back towards them. She was eating mac & cheese from the pot, trying her hardest not to be noticed in the tense moment, trying to give them some privacy.

She realized she was eating macaroni as King Arthur was having an existential crisis.

Priorities, she thought to herself, as she shook her head. She put the pot down and ran quietly upstairs, with an idea.

Merlin swallowed as he looked back up at Arthur.

"Arthur, listen. I know it's a lot to take in, so take it easy, alright? You need to take it slowly, and just- step by step."

Arthur just nodded. His mind was blank with confusion and grief. Everything he had known, everything he loved, and it was all gone.

He thought of Gwen's soft curls and kind eyes. He thought of his friends, his knights. He thought of his father, he thought of Gaius. He even thought about Morgana. All of it was gone and he was stuck here in a time well beyond his own.

He looked up at Merlin. He wasn't the same clumsy idiot he had known. He seemed much older.

"Where were you, all this time?" asked Arthur softly, which was unusual for him.

"I've been waiting," said Merlin simply, his goofy smile returning a little to his face. Arthur raised his eyebrows.

"You've been waiting for me for a thousand years?"

"Yeah."

"Wow, uh-."

He didn't say it but they could both tell that they had just shared a moment. Merlin could tell Arthur was thankful to him, and that Merlin was all he had left.

"Um…" came Essie's voice. They both looked to her. She was standing at the foot of the stairs.

"I made a room for you, if you'd like to be somewhere that's not the couch," she offered, "It's the first room so… if you want."

Arthur just glared at her. She was odd, and she belonged to a completely different time period- no, era.

"Uh, yeah," answered Merlin for him awkwardly. He could tell Arthur wanted to be left alone, "a room would be great. We'll be there in a while."

Essie nodded silently, "Also… I have something you might want."

She pulled a sword from behind her back. It was the Dragon's sword, Arthur's very sword. Excalibur.

"I was… working yesterday and came across it," she said slowly, as she began to make her way towards them, "It was at the bottom of the Lake, so I used a net to retrieve it…"

She finally handed it to Arthur. He took it from her humbly, before raising it to his eyes. It was just the same.

Merlin watched him closely. He looked to Essie, and nodded. She nodded back.

She got up slowly, and climbed back up the stairs. She could tell they needed time. She couldn't expect him to be himself, like in Merlin's stories, not now. He needed time.

Too bad she was terribly impatient.

Arthur refused to eat anymore. He merely asked for Merlin to help him upstairs. It was hard, but they achieved it. Of course, it hurt Merlin more than it hurt Arthur.

For the rest of the day, Arthur stayed in his room. He wasn't even a King anymore. All he did was sit on his bed and stare out the window. He could see the lake clearly. He saw some- some tall building, with light pouring out of it onto the lake.

He refused to look at it.

He fell asleep that night, with an empty stomach.


	4. Chapter 4

"Is he awake?"

"No."

"Did he even have any food last night?"

"No, he didn't. He didn't answer when I knocked."

"You didn't go in?"

"I think it would be better if we just left him alone for a while."

She nodded slowly, understanding. She was waiting for her toast to come out. Merlin had just come from the store with milk. He had volunteered to do a lot of things since getting younger, which is sort of contradictory to when he actually was young. He took thrill in being able to be his young self again.

It had been two days since breaking the news to Arthur. And he hadn't come out of that room.

They still hadn't cut Merlin's hair. It was presently in a ponytail, just past the middle of his back, longer than Essie's. They decided that they'd wait until Arthur was in higher spirits… or to get him into higher spirits if he came out of that damn room.

Merlin got up and went upstairs to knock on his door again. Essie could hear tentative steps and the timid knock.

"Arthur?"

There was a loud thud, then silence. Eventually, Merlin came back down the stairs. He shook his head. Essie hardened her face, before getting up herself.

"Essie, I don't think that's such a good idea…"

"No, he has to eat. He came back from the dead, Merlin," she reasoned, as she rounded the corner, "we don't need him starving to death- it's not healthy if he locks himself up there."

Merlin followed her up the stairs, afraid it could get bad. He knew her well. She wasn't as timid as she sometimes appeared to others. But around Merlin, she was genuine, and the 'genuine her' wasn't one to be messed with.

"Arthur," she called, as she rapped loudly on the door. There was no answer.

"Arthur, stop being a twat and answer." There was a loud thump against the door. He had thrown a pillow.

"That's it," muttered Essie. She pushed against the door. He had figured out how to lock it from the inside. She cussed as she reached into her pocket and grabbed a hair pin. She winked at Merlin, and picked the lock of the room. She did so easily, and burst through the door.

Arthur was on the bed, and he was surrounded by a bunch of pillows Essie had left there, all around him and on the floor. The sheets were messed and thrown on the floor.

"Enough, is enough," she scolded Arthur, who had nearly fallen off the bed at the sight of her. She was easily riled.

"You won't take such a tone with me-"

"I will take whatever tone I want with you, Arthur Pendragon, because FYI, this is my house!"

The words seemed harsh, but were numb against his ears. Merlin was out of breath and was scared of what Essie would do.

"You are a King. Sure, you aren't an actual King of Camelot anymore, but that doesn't revoke the title! You're being an idiot, and cooping yourself up here won't do a fat load of good to anyone!"

Arthur was shocked at Essie, who was breathing heavily and her hair was out of place.

"Now, are you going to continue being an idiot and die of hunger, or are you going to come downstairs like the brave prince Merlin tells me you are and come eat? Go on. Prove to me you're really the brave knight I hear you are."

Arthur remained silent. Merlin was not as shocked, and he cleared his throat.

"Um, Arthur," he put in timidly, "she isn't wrong."

Finally, Arthur got up. He had regained most of his energy and was pretty much to his old self.

He walked over to Essie, who stood in her place defiantly. Merlin looked between them, feeling the tension in the air like it was pressing against his skin.

"First, never talk to me that way again," he started icily, like a Dragon over a burning city.

"You _can't _just-"

Arthur held up a hand, closing his eyes as he cut her off, then opening them again to glare down at her again.

"Second," he continued as quietly as before, like the King he was, "you're right."

She exhaled. Merlin wasn't surprised though; he knew no matter how rough things got, Arthur always did the right thing in the end.

"You're right that I shouldn't be cooping myself up here. It's been five hundred years, and- that takes- that's just- a lot to take in. But you've reminded me of who I am. Merlin-"

He looked to Merlin, who looked up.

"Merlin, you're my only connection to the past. I might not like you, Essie," he looked back down at her, who was rooted but still defiant, "but you are useful. Disrespectful, but useful."

She cleared her throat, "I prefer the term… needed."

Arthur just rolled his eyes.

"You're odd, but you have a right mind."

She mouthed "right mind," before turning her head to face Merlin with an expression of a little girl who had just met her favourite princess. She turned back to Arthur, and cleared her throat.

"Well, come down stairs then- the eggs will get cold. Plus, I heard you get quite cranky when you're hungry," she winked again in Merlin's direction, "no wonder you've been throwing pillows."

And as odd as it was, but totally normal for her, her mood changed immediately from her angry scary warrior back to the childish timid person she usually was.

Arthur looked confused, but let it pass because he was starving. Merlin smiled. Arthur really was back.

"So it can show me whatever I want?" he repeated. It was about a week since Arthur came to terms to everything. Now, he was determined to become as accustomed to everything as he could. That way, he could do better in whatever he was brought back to do.

"Well, not anything," explained Essie from the kitchen, as she stirred a bowl vigorously, "just whatever's on."

"Huh," he looked back down at the remote, pressing a few of the buttons.

"Show me the West of the Island," he told it loudly. There was a laugh behind him.

"No, not like that," Merlin smiled, as Essie continued to laugh, "you press these numbers and it goes to different channels, see?"

"Channels?"

"Yeah, look," demonstrated Merlin, taking the remote from him and pressing lightly at the rubber buttons. The screen of the old TV fizzed a bit before changing to a channel selling miniature buoys for fishing lines.

"Oh, keep it on," put in Essie from the kitchen, as she continued to stir furiously. She looked to the small screen in interest, glancing first at the expensive price displayed in the corner. She shrugged then turned to pour her batter in.

"You know, we should really get you out and about," she said as she shook the bowl, "it would be good for you to get to know the Island."

"I do know the Island," protested Arthur, taking a bite out of another apple which was previously sitting on the table between him, Merlin, and the TV.

"I mean the Island a thousand years later," she corrected, as she tasted some of her cake mix. She turned for more sugar.

"That's a really good idea, Arthur," put in Merlin, looking to him, "as glad as I am to have you back, it's obvious you were brought back for a reason. For what, that is what frightens me."

Arthur pondered this as he inspected the old man in the commercial, munching on his apple.

"I guess you're right," he said slowly, swallowing, "I must say… it's odd not having any royal duties."

"Good or bad?" Essie yelled from the mini pantry.

"I don't know, just odd I guess," he replied, as he eyed another apple, "I feel some sort of relief, but I also feel sort of… nostalgic."

"Well," put in Merlin, "maybe you're just not used to it. It's normal to feel like you're not doing anything after doing so much for so long."

Arthur shrugged, as he reached for the apple. His hand was smacked away.

"You want to be keeping your appetite," chimed Essie, as she dropped next to Merlin on the larger couch, "the cake is going to be ready in about half an hour."

"Half an hour?" chuckled Merlin, "He may have eaten about three apples, but that's nothing- he'll be hungry in a few minutes!"

Essie giggled as she reached for the very same apple Arthur had reached for and sunk her teeth into it, eyeing him with some sort of malice. Arthur glared.

"We should set out as soon as we can," he said with authority, "perhaps now."

"After some cake," corrected Essie, taking another large bite.

There was a long silence as Essie continued to munch on her apple and frown at the TV, now advertising a rather expensive boat. Arthur glared a bit more at her as Merlin just grinned at Arthur, still extremely buoyant of his return.

Essie grabbed the remote and started flipping through the channels, her bare feet hanging from the edge of the table. She landed on Avalon News, which was a cheap television station that one could never credit anything to.

"He has been in St. Arthur's Hospital since yesterday morning, and sources tell us that his condition has been worsening. The exact cause is still unknown, doctors are simply confounded."

"Wait," interjected Arthur, his eyes glued to the screen, "What was the name of that hospital?"

"St. Arthur," smiled Merlin, "Your legend still lives amongst the people."

"Merlin's made sure of that," said Essie, unusually softly.

Merlin glanced at her and said, "No, I didn't have to. King Arthur is the most well told legend, especially here."

"Here being Cameron," interjected Essie, taking another large bite from her stolen apple.

Arthur leaned back into the sofa, absorbing this. This was what he had always wanted, to be the king everyone would remember. He felt his first real smile slowly spread across his face.

"What do you think, Bernie?" continued the Asian woman on the television, "do you think it's possible Agatha is telling any inkling of truth?"

"Oh, I don't know, Thea," came a deep male's voice, the screen switching to a scruffy middle aged man in a blue newsroom, "She's always been a wacky source."

"Oh, Agatha Belle," put in Essie, staring at the screen, "aka Old Slate."

"Who is she?"

"She's an elderly woman who lives a little down the road near the brink of the forest," replied Merlin, "she's lived here her whole life, and knows everything around here better than anyone."

"Says you," said Essie, still watching the TV intensely.

"…to think that someone with such a bright future in football, as well! He was, in fact, going to go to the mainland and pursue his passion, but now that such a tragedy has struck, there's no saying if he will even be able to walk if he gets better at all."

"Get to the mainland, my ass," scoffed Essie, talking over the stone faced reporter "who on earth would want to go there when we're already in Avalon?"

"Mainland?" asked Arthur again. He felt stupid for asking such seemingly stupid questions, but his curiosity was burning too hot to ignore.

"Mainland," said Essie, now looking past the TV, "is hell. Only fools would go."

Merlin didn't elaborate, and Arthur could only assume that Essie has no good notions on the idea of it.

"Too bad though," she sighed, her eyes refocusing, "Guy really did have a talent… other than the fact that he was a total douchebag."

"Who was he again?" asked Merlin, which Arthur was grateful to.

"Guy Schmeltzer," she droned, "jock kid who thought he was so much cooler than he really was. Annoying prat, but he doesn't deserve to die. He really was good at football."

Arthur didn't ask what football was, but could only assume it was probably some other ridiculous game that was incomparable to hunting, or jousting.

"The whole business is fishy," put in Merlin, "what's the condition, did they say?"

"Uhhh," sighed Essie, listening intensely to Bernie "Yeah, apparently he's in some sort of induced coma? That's all they're saying."

"How come?"

"What's an induced coma?" interjected Arthur, now determined to understand everything.

Merlin answered, "it's when doctors- I mean, healers- they purposefully put someone into a deep sleep so that they don't feel any pain."

"But why, they're not saying," added Essie, looking to the pair of them, "you're right, Merlin, something is certainly fishy. We ought to… investigate."

The rush of excitement that came to her was unbearable. After two years of listening to Merlin's stories and how he solved problems undercover as a non-magical assistant- it was all so fantastical. Now that Arthur was back and Merlin was finally young again, maybe they could continue these stories, and Essie cold be a part of it.

Merlin's excitement was comparable to Essie's, but he also had the nagging worry that Arthur still wasn't ready. If he was brought back, there was obviously a reason… how come, that is what scared him. An overwhelming sense of protectiveness came over him, but he was determined to never tell him anything, as Arthur would not appreciate being coddled at all.

"We should get out," Arthur finally said (to Merlin's dismay), after listening a bit more to the woman inside the talking box, "I need to get a feel of the Island, and I want to know how it went on without me."

His tone was somewhat melancholic, and Essie suddenly felt a rush of pity for him. She hadn't considered very much what he was going through.

Then again, if it were her, she would be totally excited to come back to life, even if it were such a long time.

"Alright," Merlin replied, "We can get out. Tomorrow though. You still need to gather your strength."

Arthur glared at him before looking back to the box. Obviously, as much as Merlin would like to deny it, he truly had forgotten some of Arthur's fierce strong-headedness that would never listen to any reason but his own… most of the time.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello Hello Hello. First author note, a little late, but I think there's some rather important information you all need to know.**

**IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THIS STORY:**

**This is the first of many stories. I am writing something like a series on television, in the format of a book. This story, as in 'Arthur Returns' is really just the first 'episode.' By that, I mean there will be more 'episodes' or rather sequels that will add up to the prophecy. There will be two more episodes after this one, then the fourth one will be the ultimate showdown, but you're going to have to read everything or you won't understand. After that, the fifth episode will be the aftermath, and then there will be two more episodes after that, which are sort of aftermath but there is also a second show down. I don't want to give anything away, so what I'm really saying is, when this 'episode' is done, I will continue to write more, and they will all be separate stories on my profile. If you like what I'm doing, or if you are currently enjoying this story, you will love the sequels, or rather the entire series a lot more. I hope I see you there!**

**Now back to the story. Do review! ~Essanamjay**

Arthur woke up early the next day. He had been doing so for the whole time he had been brought back. At first Merlin would come into his room to wake him, like habit was before, but he always came in on Arthur just lying in bed, staring blankly up at the ceiling, lost in thought. Eventually he stopped coming in.

Every morning, when Arthur would jerk awake from a dream he could never quite remember, he was always, without a fail, surprised at where he was. For a couple of short seconds his mind would assume he was captive, but then everything would come rushing back like a hot sticky river.

His thoughts always turned to the same thing. He ached for Gwen to be next to him, her chest rising and falling, and a trace of a kind smile on her face as she slept. But instead he was alone in a narrow white 'twin' bed, the naked window letting in streams of light outside of his time era.

He also thought of the whole business of him coming back. As glad as he was not being dead, he still felt out of place and responsible for events to come. Merlin was right, as strange as the notion was. He had definitely been brought back for a reason, as told in the prophecy. According to Merlin, anyway. And Essie.

Essie. What kind of name was that anyway? He couldn't help but feel loads of resentment towards her. It was unplaced and stupid and childish, but she unsettled him.

He sighed, then slowly began to get up. He sat on the edge of the cushy bed for a while, wondering what on earth was happening to him. A small seed of fear did exist in his gut, but this he would never admit to anyone, not even to Merlin.

He lifted himself up and wondered over to the closet, pulling out a baggy shirt Essie had so grudgingly gave him "for free" a while after he had woken up from his deep slumber. It had a giant gaping fish on it with the logo "Lake-Side Fisherman's Shop." As it was the only article of clothing he owned, other than the black pants he had risen from the grave wearing, his wardrobe was repetitive and nowhere close to the luscious silks he used to wear.

He trudged down the narrow steps into the kitchen. Merlin was sitting on the couch twisting his still long raven black hair between his fingers as his eyes were lost in the distance out the window before him. Merlin tended to unnerve Arthur a lot these days. He still couldn't believe he had waited for him for so long. The wisdom in his eyes was so out of place, and Arthur couldn't help but think of Merlin's sudden resemblance to Gaius.

Merlin looked up from his deep thought, his eyes refocusing. A goofy smile took the place of the stern frown.

"My King," he greeted, almost teasingly. Arthur shook his head.

"I cannot help but sense some sarcasm on your part," Arthur told him. Merlin's smile grew.

"I am still your liege, your Majesty," he said, now emphasizing the irony of the situation.

"And I still have the power to throw something at you. I'm not too picky about what," replied Arthur, as he opened the cold closet Essie had told him was called a _fridge_. Of all the inventions in the modern day, the fridge was definitely his favourite.

"We will be going out, I presume?" Arthur ventured, remembering the conversation of yesterday.

"I guess so," sighed Merlin half-heartedly, "Can I give my advice though?"

"No one is here to stop you anymore," Arthur said in the same flat tone, as he finally stuck his head out the fridge with a jug of milk and a loaf of yesterday's cake.

Merlin sighed again before answering, "Arthur- I can't help but feel like you're not yet ready to-"

"Merlin," groaned Arthur, "I'm still the same man, I feel the same too."

Merlin raised an eyebrow at the thin lie.

"You could not be more wrong, Arthur," he boldly returned, "Listen… you don't want to… talk about it?"

Arthur dulled his eyes at him, before saying, "It seems I am not the only one who has not changed after so long."

Merlin's mouth twitched at this jab, but his feelings remained. He really wanted to make sure Arthur was okay.

"Cuckoo," came a bright voice. A very disheveled Essie appeared around the corner, skipping stairs into the small kitchen. She picked a piece out of Arthur's cake as she passed, stiffing it into her mouth before he could protest.

"If you did that in my time-"

"Calm down, old man," she snickered, sticking her thumb at him cheekily. He rolled his eyes, but said nothing. Merlin noted this down as another difference between the proud Arthur he remembered and now.

"We're going out, yeah?" she chimed, "I did a bit of thinking, and I watched some more of the News. Apparently, Guy Schmeltzer had gone into the forest to cut wood, but didn;t make it back before dinner like he had promised. Old Slate was the one who found him, and her story is pretty ludicrous."

"What did she say?"

"She reported that he was turned to stone," she smiled almost wickedly.

"Stone?" repeated Arthur, "What's so ludicrous about it?"

"It's not true, obviously," Essie replied, rolling her eyes, "because he isn't physically _stone_, else he wouldn't be in the hospital, would he? Nah, Old Agatha Belle was just trying to attract attention, as usual. Drama Llama."

No one understood the reference she made, but she shrugged nevertheless.

"I think we should go and visit this Agatha Belle," put in Arthur, "hear her story first hand. It must have _some _truth to it."

Merlin agreed with a nod of his head.

"Okay, I guess we can, but can I just say, what comes out of her mouth is hardly ever actually true. And we'll also have to be very careful what we say to her, because she takes offense easily."

"Alright, so you shouldn't talk at all," joked Merlin. Essie rolled her eyes yet again, before grabbing another piece of Arthur's cake. He grabbed it back however, which turned into a nasty contest of glaring daggers.

"All I'm saying is, if we take Christie we can get there faster, then we can do a bit of exploring," implored Essie. They had just taken Essie's boat across the Lake. They were arguing over how to get to town, which was about two miles of uneven road away.

"And all _I'm _saying is that I am never getting into those animals, ever," retorted Arthur, crossing his arms. Essie took a deep breath.

"It's not an animal! It's a _machine!"_

"Either way, I am saying _no!"_

"Both of you, be quiet!" Merlin finally cut in, "_I _will decide if we use the car. Arthur, it seems it would be more practical to take it, that way you can see town more. Not to mention you are still-"

"I am not weak!" he said hotly, "stop treating me like a patient, Merlin!"

Merlin sighed.

"Fine. But please, let's make haste, before it is dark- and stop bickering!" Merlin replied sternly. He couldn't understand why the two were so determined to find difference in everything.

Essie however, despite winning (so to speak) the argument, she was still a bit stung**.** Merlin was sucking up to him so much! She couldn't help but feel a bit neglected. She knew she was being childish and stupid, but at the same time, it just made her want to prove to Arthur that she had as much power and as much importance as him.

"Alright, all set to go?"

They nodded disdainfully. Essie turned to the shabby shed she had turned into a garage. Inside was a small compact Yugo GV Plus. Second hand, and fixed by Essie using the power of the internet, it was old, rickety, and sometimes it randomly switched off, and you'd have to push it and start it whilst it was moving for it to work again. Despite this, Essie had christened it Christie and considered the thing a huge accomplishment.

"We're going to be riding _that?_" said Arthur disbelievingly. Essie didn't answer, but simply got into the driver's seat and tried to start it. It took a while, but eventually she managed to get it out of the shed, and Merlin and Arthur hopped in as it turned into Twisty Trail without it stopping, else it would never turn on again.

Twisty Trail was basically its name. Leading around the small hill of a mountain, the tall trees reached up to the sky like unrequited lovers. They surrounded the thin uneven trail like a wall, though it got thinner as they got closer to town. The atmosphere was hot and almost humid, which Arthur found uncomfortable, but still quite amiable.

"So we'll visit Old Slate, hear her side of things, then we can go into town and do a bit of shopping. I need some more apples and I'm nearly clean of milk," Essie said this pointedly and glanced over at Arthur, who was the one responsible for her sudden need in supplies. He wasn't listening, however. He was too busy staring out the window down the road.

Merlin answered, "Doesn't she live just on the brink of the forest?"

"No, apparently not. She has recently moved into a little burrow a little more down this road. Too much press, she says."

"How do you know?"

"I've asked Creaky Thomas last time he came to buy worms," she replied, frowning as Christie let out a loud popping sound, "he also told me that the press have no wind of it yet, so I have to keep my mouth shut or he won't buy from me anymore. I always thought he had a crush on her."

Merlin chuckled at this. Essie owned a little Fisher's Store on the shore of the lake, where fishermen could buy their supplies. The business was small and run down, but she loved it anyway. She always said that the hard work paid off and it was satisfying. Merlin could never have understood in his time, but now he sympathised completely.

A little while later, Essie reluctantly switched off the car in the middle of the road, and directed it into parking on the side as it rolled a bit down a small bump. They came out quietly, as to not startle Miss Belle and make her assume the press had come to visit, although Merlin doubted that she would believe they had come for a cup of tea out of the good of their hearts. So they had decided to come to offer sympathy for the fright she had experienced when she had come across Guy.

They walked a bit into the forest, and came across a small hill with a door carved into the rough side. A thin wire was hanging between two trees carrying damp panties and an apron, which Essie pointed out giggling. Arthur looked away pointedly.

They walked up to the rickety wood door which was already slightly open. Merlin knocked timidly. After no reply, Essie rapped on it loudly, until there was a small crash inside and a raspy voice cussing.

The door opened to reveal a stalky old lady with a hooked nose. She had wiry grey hair and dry flaky skin, and her small grey eyes were a bit too far apart. Her mouth was moving wordlessly, as if she were muttering to herself. To add to this eccentric appearance, she was wearing what appeared to be a bright red Sheba dress, and there was a loud clip in her hair with a seagull feather obviously glued to it.

"What d'you want?" she asked them brusquely, peering to each of them individually, "if you've come to bother me I'll scream very loudly, and someone will come to my rescue."

"No ma'am, there's no need for that," replied Essie in a forced voice, "We've come to- er- offer our condolences."

"Con-doh-lences?" she hawked, "why on ea'th would I need con-doh-lences... is this 'bout the Stone Boy?"

"Yes, Miss Belle," put in Merlin kindly, "we wanted to make sure you were alright. It must have been distressing, finding a young man turned to stone, and the reporters have been troubling you a lot, we've heard."

"Why- Why yes, yes," she said finally, looking between Merlin and Arthur and Essie, "Yes, of course. Yes, they '_ave_ been botherin' me quite a lot actually, yes."

"We wanted to make sure you were… alright," offered Arthur, spotting a taxidermied rat hanging from her ceiling inside.

"Yes, well- alrigh' come in then," she barked, turning her back on them and hobbling back inside. Essie traded a meaningful look to the boys before leading their way in.

The inside of her hurried home reflected its owner like a mirror. There was a small wooden table with a missing leg in the center, surrounded by five mismatched chairs, one of which were a stump protruding from the middle. There were multiple boxes lined against the wall which served as the kitchen counter.

There was no sink except for a small spout stuck into the muddy wall, which was dripping water into a bucket under it, with a loud _pang. _It was all on big circular room, and the only thing supporting the ceiling which was really the top of the while hill was a single thin beam right across. The shabby couch in the corner had a blanket thrown across it that horribly resembled a bear coat. Not to mention the one of many taxidermied rats and even a hedgehog which were hanging sadly from the ceiling's beam.

"What an- er- lovely place," forced Merlin through an even more forced smile, his ears protruding out of his long hair.

"Yes, it's very high fashion," replied Essie, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she peered up laboriously at the poor animals. Arthur couldn't help but sympathise with her for the first time. The hovel was worse than some of the poorest of his subjects'.

"Yes, thank you, thank you," said Agatha distantly. She never liked visitors, not since her lover had died. Her only company was her pets now, how quiet and obedient they were. Such nice gifts from Herbert.

"Tea?" she yelled at them, gesturing to the copper kettle next to her bucket and the small tin that held several dried herbs Essie guessed were probably all poison ivy.

"Oh no, we couldn't thank you," returned Merlin politely. Arthur glanced at him, dawning a rather tortured expression. He suddenly only wanted to get back into that machine of Essie's, which was a first.

"The press've been houndin' me, they 'ave," started Agatha suddenly, "berratin' me. Won't lemme have a single second alone."

She said this as she hobbled over to her bucket to pour herself some tea. The three took their seats around the table, Arthur getting caught and ending up sitting on the uncomfortable stump protruding from the uneven dirt.

"To be 'onest, I ain't too bovvered," she continued, as she poured herself some water into a grubby plastic cup, "I like it, actually. Makes me feel like a celebrity- like Angelina Jolie."

She flashed a grin in their direction. Arthur spotted several black and missing teeth. She dropped a few herbs into her cup before turning and taking a seat next to Merlin, in the plushy small bean bag that was balanced on a crate.

"Miss Belle," started Merlin, trying to be as light as possible, "do you think you can describe for us exactly what happened?"

"It's all on the News, just wotch tha'," she said a bit brutishly, as she took a sip from her tea.

"Yes, well, you see," started Merlin again, "they can't describe it like you can. We'd like to hear it from you, first hand, in all its glory."

Arthur nodded slightly in Merlin's direction, as Old Slate seemed to like the word _glory. _Her mouth became a thin line that slowly drew up its corners. She took one more sip from her tea, and started to run her knobbly fingers through her wiry hair.

"Ah, yes," she sighed, "o' course you'd like to know the whole thing. Those silly reporters have no idea what they're saying, do they?"

They all shook their heads no. Essie couldn't help but at least add, "not as much as you, anyway."

Not understanding her sarcasm, Old Slate continued, "yes, they have no idea at all. Lemme tell ya.

"I was just goin' out, pickin' some berries, the such. It was gettin' a bit dark, and I knew where the best berries were, see. By the little grove of Elder trees a little west from 'ere. But I don't like to go there when it's dark, oh no- it's bad luck.

"So I was pickin' my berries, thinkin' 'bout the scrumptious salad I would make of 'em, when I 'eard someone cry ou'. Now me, I live in a pre'y lonely area, me being the old woman I am. I like the peace n' quiet. So when I 'eard someone cry out, I was scared out o' my wits.

"But o' course, I couldn' just ignore it. Wha' if someone was in danger? It is my duty to 'elp anyone in need. Me old mum used to always tell me, she said, 'Agatha, if you ever wanna be forgiven by God for any sins you've committed, all ya got to do is give a helping hand.' Took this to 'eart, so I set out to find out what I had 'eard."

By now, Arthur noted how excited she seemed to be getting. Her mouth twisted and she was rubbing her cup of tea lightly with her stubbed finger. She had a faraway look in her eyes, as if she were envisioning herself to be a saviour of the damned. He couldn't help but be a little repulsed by her complex.

"As I got closer, I could 'ear some rustlin'. Couldn't figure it out la'er. I can also swear I 'eard some footsteps leadin' away, but I wasn't payin' attention to tha' 'cause it was when I came across the Elder's Grove, and I saw the poor young man on the ground, writhin' around and the like. I went up to 'im as fast as my little leggsies could carry me, and I stooped by 'im.

"You wouldn't believe the look of 'im. 'E was ill and grey, and 'e was foamin' a bit at the mouth. 'Is eyes were wide open and dartin' 'bout, like 'e was lookin' for somethin'. I couldn't 'elp but feel a bit put off, but I couldn't leave the poor lad. 'E looked to me and grabbed my hand, which was so tight I'm sure my blood stopped for a bit. 'E made some retchin' noises and I knew 'e was tryin' to tell me somethin'."

"'Wha' is it?' I kep' axin' 'im. 'E couldn't do anythin' but make gurgly noses from 'is throat. 'E kept tryin' to pull me closer. I leaned in and put my ear next to 'is mouth, which was a bit disgustin' as he was frothin', but I couldn't 'elp but feel in the pits of my stomach that what 'e wanted to say was impor'ant.

"I leaned up close to him, and he says, in a horrible deep voice, he says… 'Seven.' O' course, I have no idea what 'e meant by that. I can only guess that what had made 'im that way addled with his brains as well."

"What do you think it was, Old... Miss Belle?" Arthur whispered dramatically, trying to fuel her desire to be center of attention. She turned her grey eyes to him, with a foreboding expression.

"Why, it was Old Girl, o' course."


	6. Chapter 6

"Old Girl?" repeated Essie, obviously skeptical, "Who's Old Girl?"

"A terrible spirit," explained Old Slate forebodingly, "she protects the Elder Wood, the same wood used t' crucify Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour."

Merlin nodded respectfully, "I recognize the name. Very old, wasn't she?"

She nodded vigorously, her eyes darting between Arthur and Essie, who both looked disbelieving, "My mum used to talk of 'er. 'Don't play by the grove of elders,' she told me. 'Orrible, 'orrible."

She nodded to herself, as if to reassure.

"Right, okay," started Arthur, trying his hardest not to convey at all the way he was feeling towards the woman, "so what makes you think it was… Old Girl?"

"It's obvious," she answered solidly, sensing the disbelief from the young girl and man who reminded her of her own father, "Strapping young youth, you never understand the weigh' o' your actions."

She didn't completely understand what she had said but merely repeated what her Papa used to always tell her, when she used to go out with the girls. That was, of course, such a terribly long time ago.

"What makes you think she would have gone after Guy?" pressed Essie, trying to will herself to understand the mad woman who was sipping at her tea like she would perish if she didn't.

"Well, the story is tha' the witch protects the wood from thieves and baddies. You must _never, _never ever_ ever, _chop Elder trees. Not unless y' wanna to die, tha' is."

"How come?" Asked Merlin genuinely.

"Because withou' 'er permission, y'll be subject to terrible fortune. The boy, well… 'e didn't know."

Arthur raised an eyebrow, "and how exactly do you ask permission?"

Old Slate looked to him, her eyes wide, then said hotly, "well, 'tis a very specific set o' words, boy. Are you planning t' go chop elders any time soon?"

"No, No, Miss Belle," said Merlin rapidly, sensing the danger as Essie opened her mouth to retort angrily, "we were just curious. Also, the press haven't been paying attention to you like they should. You obviously know more than any of them."

Old Slate peered at him, her grey eyes glittering, before she answered, "Yes, yes. Yes, y're quite right, yes."

She threw a mean look at Essie, before telling Merlin directly, "y' must be very precise and careful when it comes to Old Girl."

She leaned forward ominously, looking upon the three of them like she were to decide their fates.

"To ask for forgiveness of the witch and earn her trust, y' must chant 'Old girl, give me some of thy wood… and I will give thee some of mine when I grow into a tree.'"

Essie could tell the words were obviously old ones. Merlin slipped into Old English when he was upset or angry (the latter having only surfaced once). Arthur talked like that sometimes too, but he switched between the dictions like someone was turning it on and off remotely. She figured there was some kind of force that was making him blend in to the modern society or something.

"Alright, Miss Belle," Merlin finally concluded, "we should get out of your way."

"Yes, yes, I was quite busy," she said, peering up at her rats, "I was quite busy."

"We'll be going then," said Arthur rather quickly. He wanted nothing more than to get out of there. The place was getting to him, and he was afraid his one shirt might start to smell like the musty hovel.

They all got up and cleared out. She practically shooed them out, repeating that she was busy and they had gotten her at a horrible time. Essie was the quickest to get out.

"Oh my Gods_,_" she whispered, after the door shut behind them, "did either of you also feel like those rats were staring at you? Dear _Gods._"

"She was quite airy and full of flies in the head, wasn't she," agreed Arthur for the first time, "Reckon we can really trust what she says?"

Merlin nodded, "I think we can. I do recall my mum telling me something similar."

"Really?"

"Yes, whenever I'd go to chop wood, she would always tell me to avoid the elder wood. I also used to hear a lot of things about 'Old Woman.' I'm guessing it's the same thing."

He succumbed to quiet thought. He did that whenever he talked about his past, Essie reflected.

"Old _Woman_?" repeated Arthur, "I remember reading something like that from father's records."

"Well if it was in the records, then it means it was killed off, right?" asked Essie brusquely. Arthur narrowed his eyes at her.

"Yes, typically," he answered slowly.

There was an awkward pause.

"But what about what Guy had said," Essie added suddenly, "'Seven.' What does that mean?"

Merlin shrugged.

"If this really does have to do with anything magic or supernatural, the number seven can have literally hundreds of meanings."

"Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know," pondered Merlin, suddenly wishing Gaius was there, "in some places it can be a lucky number, and in others it is unlucky. It plays great roles in tons of legends, and it's considered holy by a lot of religions."

Essie digested this. There was no other way.

"We should go to the Grove," she pressed, "check out the 'Elder Grove' as Old Slate calls it. We can find some clues."

The notion gave her butterflies. She was solving mysteries with Merlin and Arthur, like in the stories. It was all she would fantasize about.

"But I want to go to town," Arthur blurted.

"This is more important though. Lives could be in danger!"

"Lives are always in danger."

"That's harsh."

"It's true," retorted Arthur. He had seen death first hand. Hell, he had died himself. Merlin sympathized to this.

"I'm sure we can leave it for a little while, Essie," he said, trying to calm her excitement, "I say we go to town, explore a bit, and then when we decide to leave, we can drop by the Grove on the way home. Deal?"

Essie huffed, but she accepted. _The sooner we go, the sooner we can leave, _she thought to herself, which was a small comfort.

She led their way back to Christie. She was strangely quiet, Arthur observed. But this didn't dampen his spirits at all. He could barely conceal his excitement, or his horrible dread. He struggled to maintain his Kingly composure.

They clambered back into car, and off they went. She was driving quite fast, thought Merlin, but he kept it to himself. He knew how she was when it came to anything outside the forest. And the forest was slowly growing thinner as they drew nearer to town, much like Essie's patience.

Despite herself, she started to slow down at the first glimpse of the town's small buildings. In her opinion (and she had several) the town was rundown, behind its times, and a little sad. There were tons of strange characters inhabiting the town, and only a certain few were born here. The majority came from who knows where.

To Arthur however, it was an alien land, one he couldn't begin to imagine. He could see the grey buildings from a distance, and the tip of something shiny and golden in the distance. As small as it was, it was bustling with activity, like the market in the villages of his time. His eyes grew slowly, and he didn't know whether he should be excited or afraid. His stomach was in knots.

Merlin smiled gently as they passed the Welcome sign, reading-

_CAMERON_

SMALL TOWN, HUMBLE COMMUNITY!

POP. 900

As they entered the town, several people who were ambling either scowled at the car or avidly ignored it. Arthur didn't see this, however, because he was too busy ogling at the first structure they passed.

"What is _that?_" he demanded, pointing out the window.

"It's a gas station," explained Merlin, trying to find words that Arthur would understand, "it's where we… feed the cars."

"Like a horse stable?"

"Er, yeah, basically."

Arthur digested this, not understanding why on earth a machine would need to eat, but he was distracted too much to care.

"And that? What's that one?"

"The post office. It's where we send letters."

"Oh, that sort of thing still exists then?" he muttered, assuming they used machines now, like for everything else.

"Yes."

He looked out the opposite window to his left. There was a large brick building with strange colorful things stuck to the windows from the inside. Some younger kids were playing around the front of it.

"What's-?"

"That's the school," answered Merlin, "kids from 6 all the way to 18 attend. There are not a lot of children in Cameron, and many choose to home-school."

Essie remained quiet, gritting her teeth, as they slowed at the intersection. Here was only on single traffic light in all of Cameron, and it was here. Arthur gazed at it, which made Merlin's goofy smile return.

"It's a light telling us when to stop and go," he told him, "red is for stop, yellow is for slow down, and green is for go."

"Can it- Does it know we're here?"

"No, it's automated."

Merlin had watched this town become what it was today. He had watched the kingdom grow smaller and smaller, spreading across the island and becoming their own establishments. He remembered how there was a sudden crash in money, and then there was war with the surrounding 'kingdoms.' Eventually there was a war with the rest of the world, then sickness, then another war, and during all of it there was a sudden burst in technology, though Cameron wasn't exactly the most furnished, even if it did seem so to Arthur.

"McDonald's," Essie spoke for the first time, gesturing the Golden Arch, "the only restaurant in the whole of Cameron. If there is one thing I like about town, it's McDonald's."

Arthur looked to his right to observe the flat comical building that glistened in the small amount of sunlight. It was made of some peculiar material that Essie had told him was plastic a while back, but he could hardly remember at that point.

"Oh look, the corner store," commented Essie, then repeated"I really need to drop by, as I'm almost clean of milk and apples."

She glanced back at Arthur again accusingly, but he wasn't paying attention. He was too busy ogling at what was ahead of them. There was a large clearing surrounded by the largest structures in the whole town. He spotted a statue but he couldn't tell what it was from here.

"Town Square," smiled Merlin, excited to show Arthur this part of the city, which was his personal favourite.

As they arrived near the main square, they parked at the side of the road laboriously, due to the pot holes and cramped space, but eventually she managed it, though it wasn't completely successful. Half the car was on the sidewalk, to the dismay of the senior man in drag who was smoking by the fast food restaurant.

They clambered out as Christie let out a final sigh. Essie patted the roof and looked out into Town's Square.

"Come," ushered Merlin to Arthur, "I want to show you something."

They ambled into the square, which was bordered by vendor stands. The Library stood majestically at the opposite side of the space, towering over the small area. To its right side of it was the town hall, comparably smaller. The bells were ringing loudly, sending vibrations through Arthur's chest, conveying to them it was four o' clock.

The statue was what drew Arthur. He walked up to it, his eyes stuck to the face carved into the stone.

It was him.

The statue was obviously old, compared to the rest of the square. The stone was a dark gray, but the detail was still incredibly well kept. His features were chiseled, his expression a noble one, looking into the distance. He was holding out a sword, which was an almost exact replica of Excalibur, pointing towards the Town Hall. At his feet were detailed poppies sprouting around his shield, which was leaning against his leg. There was a small engravement on it, which read:

_Qui regnabat, qui audierunt._

_Et portate Deum in cuius anime altero._

_Vivat rex Artorius._

"The man who ruled, the man who listened. God rest his soul and carry into the next world. Long Live King Arthur" said a soft voice, which surprisingly came from Essie. He turned to her. She was gazing at the words as well, as if she were captivated by it. Merlin smiled as well.

"The whole town was basically built around it you know," she continued in her soft voice, looking to him with a gentle smile, which suited her, he thought, "the memory of you as the King could never be erased… although Merlin had something to do with that."

Her smile turned cricked as she smiled elvishly in Merlin's direction, to the other side of Arthur. Merlin chuckled.

"Yes, well," he replied, "When the statue was erected, I made sure it stuck around."

Arthur smiled toothily, and looked back at the fierce face of stone. Something about it conveyed more than Arthur really was. It communicated a complex that Arthur didn't think he had had.

"You lived up to it," added Merlin, sensing what Arthur was feeling, "you were way better than this statue could ever be, in fact."

Arthur looked to him, and returned the sentiment.

"I underestimated you, old man," he teased, taking after Essie, "you aren't a _complete_ failure."

Merlin laughed, "And that is what I waited 1000 years to hear."

Essie joined in on their laughter. They turned away from the statue.

"I'm quite hungry," blurted Arthur. The excitement was getting to him.

"Surprise, surprise," muttered Essie. Merlin chuckled.

"We can get food."

Essie sighed, "Food is expensive here…"

"I'm sure it is worth it, on this occasion," said Merlin sternly. Essie glared at him, then sighed again.

"Fine," she grumbled, "ever tried fish and chips, King Arthur?"

He shook his head. She gasped.

"You have seen so much, but experienced so little!" she exclaimed, drawing the curious glances of a few ganglers, "I'll go get some immediately. I might even be able to scrounge a discount."

She hopped off, skipping towards one of the sour faced vendors. Arthur and Merlin sat at the foot of the marble steps of the towering library. Arthur deliberated what he wanted to ask though the long silence.

"So, er… how- how was-?"

"Gwen?" guessed Merlin. Arthur nodded.

"She was amazing," he answered with solidarity, "she led the kingdom into a new era of equality and glory…she didn't remarry or have children or anything, so…"

"The Pendragons…?"

"Lost the throne," Merlin sighed, "Power went to the Andonius family. They were alright."

"Were they?"

"Nothing compared to you."

Arthur digested this, as he looked out past the vendors, where Essie seemed to be quarreling with one. There was a bit of field and then forest. In the distance were a few mountains. He wondered what was beyond them, and how much had changed.

"Gwen was the one who erected the statue, you know," said Merlin softly, "she made me promise not to ever let it be taken away. The last promise I made… in fact."

Merlin's eyes blurred a bit, but he rubbed at them furiously. It's been years.

"Did… did she know?" asked Arthur sheepishly, "about… about…"

"What, my magic?" finished Merlin, not looking away from the distance he was staring into, "no, she didn't, I never told her. Although… I think she sort of guessed. Her last words to me- they were… 'Never let his memory perish, Merlin. Please, I know you can do this.'"

"You saw her afterwards then? After I- died?"

"Yes. Twice. Once a little after you… and once when she had sent for me. Apparently she had been indirectly protecting me for all the time she had power, made sure I was safe and wasn't targeted. But she sent for me one last time to tell me to make sure your memory didn't die."

There was a long silence, which lasted until Essie returned with a large white box. She sat in between them, muttering angrily.

"Managed to get a discount," she murmured to them, "took me a while, but he gave this to me for half the price, but _only _if I give him free worms for the next month. I swear."

She continued to mutter angrily as she opened the box, which let out the steamy smell of grilled fish and hot chips. She smacked her lips and rubbed her hands.

"Kinda worth it though," she smiled at them. She saw their expressions, and her eyebrows immediately drew together.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," assured Merlin, giving her the same grandfatherly smile he would give her before. This warmed her heart a bit, and she flashed a smile one more time before directly offering some to Arthur.

"Try it, it's almost good as mac & cheese," she told him, _"Almost."_

He reached in, took some chips and a bit of the fish. Essie showed him how to eat it with the sauce, as Merlin watched grinning.

"Alright," she sighed, when Arthur had settled, "so Guy Schmeltzer goes to chop wood, comes across the Elder Grove, and tries to cut a tree. He doesn't ask 'permission', and the 'Old Girl' gets… revenge?"

"I guess so. How come now though? It can't be the first time someone's cut an elder tree, but this is the first time I remember this happening," continued Merlin, eating a mouthful of chips as well.

"Maybe it's something about Arthur coming back," suggests Essie, "I mean, you got younger. Maybe this is the same thing?"

Arthur shrugged, "I don't know how much damage my coming back did. This just might be some angry spirit that suddenly felt like wreaking havoc."

"Why? Just because?"

"Yeah, I mean, magic isn't a very, er- stable nature, is it," coughed Arthur, glancing at Merlin. Merlin grinned more.

"Maybe" he answered, still grinning, "it wouldn't be the first temperamental spirit."

They continued to eat, when Arthur put in, "What do we know about the stone man... Guy Shm... something?"

Essie scoffed, as she stuffed her face even more, "hardly even a man. Immature twit, he was, the two years I knew him… well, I didn't really… know him, so to speak."

Arthur looked to her, as he chewed his fish, "How come?"

Essie scowled, "Well, I wasn't exactly… easy at making friends, see. And I wasn't the most… popular person."

Arthur arched an eyebrow, and Merlin merely glanced in her direction.

"What do you mean?"

She huffed, then snapped, "I mean no one liked me okay? I wasn't likable."

"_Was_n't?"

She stuck her tongue out at him, taking more chips.

"Alright, but what did you know about him, based on what went around?" pressed Merlin. Essie glared at him.

"Well, not much really," she answered with a mouthful (to Arthur's disgust), "He was the typical football jock. Loud, obnoxious, but bloody good at what he did. He was known around town for it. Oh, and he had this _really _annoying girlfriend, oh my _Gods. _Her name was… Cashlin, I think. Cashlin Vine."

"Cashlin? Were they still…?"

"I don't know," she snapped at Arthur, "I was hardly concerned for their social lives, I tried to ignore them and everyone else while I was there, and leaving was the cut off."

There was a silence as they all continued to wolf down their remaining food.

"What about you?" asked Arthur, "Merlin tells me you have to go to this school from when you're 6 to when you're... 18?"

"Typically," she said reservedly, "I came here when I was 16, so I was forced to go by the Town's Councillors. I hate it the whole while though."

Merlin shook his head at Arthur, warning him not to ask further. It was obviously a sensitive subject for her. Although, it wasn't like he treated Arthur and Merlin's pasts with sensitivity.

"Alright, were done," she announced, "And it's going to get dark soon. We should go see the Grove while we can."


	7. Chapter 7

**Short chapter this week, I'm afraid. Volunteering takes up a lot of my time! I promise it'll be longer next time! (After two such long chapters one should hardly complain ^_^) **

**Do review! ~Essanamjay xoxo**

Though Arthur was a little reluctant on leaving town, he was still quite eager to get back and fall into the pillows. All the walking around and the absorbing of this century made his muscles like jelly. Maybe he hadn't truly regained all his strength after all.

But Essie and Merlin insisted the go see the Grove, so he had no other choice but to agree.

They got into the car and settled. After a few desperate minutes of Essie trying to start the car, then getting out of the difficult parking they were in, she finally managed to do a horrible U-turn and start their way back up the trail.

The sun was starting to set earlier than usual behind them, casting looming shadows down the dirt trail. It gave the forest a new face, Arthur thought. Suddenly it wasn't a friendly light forest inhibited by small woodland creatures. It had turned into a tall wall of darkness, threatening to swallow them in and never let them out.

_Some things never change_, Arthur thought.

They drove without talking all the way to where they had parked previously to see Old Slate. They came out quietly to not disturb her, as Essie had warned them that since it was getting darker she would assume something insane and call the cops.

They walked silently into the forest, which Arthur was accustomed to tracing back to his days with the knights. Merlin, strangely, seemed completely comfortable to do so as well, which was different from what Arthur remembered. He used to be fidgety and made a lot of sarcastic comments on how they were all going to die. Secretly Arthur used to enjoy his dry humor because it distracted him from feeling a bit jumpy in the forest as well. Everyone was, to some extent, afraid of the dark.

Essie was completely ignorant of her surroundings, strutting through the forest like she was seeking out prey, not being sought out herself. Although, Arthur reminded himself, there weren't looters and rapists and the such hiding in the forest anymore. Or… he didn't think so. There must have been... something done about that.

"She had said it was a little west from here," muttered Merlin, as they passed Agatha Belle's burrow. Arthur almost ran into the panties-clad clothesline, but luckily, Essie caught his drift and shoved him out of its way.

They stepped into the denser parts of the forest, the sun now only peeping through between the trunks slightly. Light was scarce.

"There," Arthur panted, "that little clearing, it must be it."

"Yeah, seems so."

They stepped into a tiny grove surrounded by short stalky trees, with a dusty light green wig of leaves. Some small white flowers appeared here and there amongst their branches, but they were dying at this time of year, it seemed. Merlin remembered how they were used in potions to cure small things like burns and warts, but also things like epilepsy and blindness. Just in case, he collected a few of the surviving ones and placed them into the small pouch hanging from his shoulder.

"There must be where it happened," pointed out Arthur suddenly, spying a small disturbance at the foot of a particularly larger Elder tree. The dirt looked slightly churned up, and there was a curiously less amount of grass growing there. Arthur stooped low and examined the patch of ground. It looked almost… burned away.

"Look, his axe is still here," pointed out Merlin from behind him. Arthur looked over his shoulder and spotted Merlin with a small fire axe, which seemed to have been throw amongst a small bush just a little over.

"It's so… messed up," stated Essie, examining the handle, "look, it's been cut up here… how'd that happen?"

"It seems like the axe was chopped by another axe," murmured Merlin. Essie rolled her eyes at this observation.

"Nicely put," she muttered.

"There's quite a lot of dust here," observed Arthur, peering at his handful of dirt closely in his hand, "like something's been burned."

Merlin made his way over and peered over Arthur's shoulder.

"Well, not really, it looks more like something's been… smashed in this spot, I think."

"Like stone?" inquired Essie, remembering how Old Slate had insisted Guy Schmeltzer had turned into some sort of statue. She was now looking around the largest Elder Tree that towered above them.

"Seems so," murmured Arthur, "and look-"

Arthur took the axe from Merlin, examining the handle more closely, "-the handle's been pressed under some sort of grip until it broke, it hasn't been chopped. That would back up Old Slate's story a bit."

Merlin nodded back, when suddenly Essie gasped loudly.

"Guys, look at this!" she whispered in awe, pushing back the branches to let them see. Merlin and Arthur got up and looked over her shoulder.

Carved into the tree eloquently, like it had been done by an expert wood carver, was a small picture of a tree whose branches were connected to the roots, like a circle. The branches and roots criss-crossed each other symmetrically, all coming together in the middle to form a thick and cricked trunk. The symbol was almost too familiar to Arthur.

"But that's- that's…"

"Morgana's crest," breathed Merlin, "the symbol of the Old Religion."

Arthur swallowed. The air got a little thicker.

"What do you mean?" asked Essie, looking between them and their serious expressions, "what's the symbol of Old Religion, what does it mean?"

"Also known as the Tree of Life," answered Merlin in barely more than a whisper, tracing the lines with his long fingers, "it represents very _very_ old magic. If whatever has done this to Schmeltzer is of the Old Religion, then we're in deep trouble."

"How come?"

"Because it is the sign of evil," replied Arthur, looking at her in frustration, "if this… Old Girl comes from the Old Religion than it will be much harder to beat or subdue. Not to mention the magic is thrice times powerful."

"How do you know that?" asked Essie, suddenly curious and not at all fazed by what was happening. In fact, a rush of adrenaline was pulsing through her at the mention of this danger.

Arthur glared at her.

"I _read._"

"Alright, alright," sighed Merlin, "we should really go see this Guy Schmeltzer for ourselves."

"_Now?"_ inquired Arthur. He was suddenly very conscious of his back. A strange feeling was creeping up and down his spine.

"No," assured Essie, now definitely catching on and sensing the tension in the air, "we should go home, it's much too dark and the hospital where he is is too far away. C'mon, let's go, I'm getting the creepy crawlies."

Arthur arched an eyebrow at her expression but nodded. He wanted nothing more but to be unconscious. Merlin also agreed solemnly.

They made their way back just as the sun set, casting them into almost pitch darkness. Essie had a small flashlight on her car keys, but it acted more like a beam of light for them to follow.

Eventually they made their way to the car (this time Arthur really did get caught up in Old Slate's clothesline) and they all got in, grateful for the cover other than the dark canopy of tree branches above them.

There was small panic as Essie momentarily couldn't start the car, and they were stuck there for about ten minutes simply trying to start it. In the end, Merlin and Arthur had to push it for it to get going, but eventually they achieved. The boys had to chase it downhill, as Essie cackled at their futile attempts to catch up and hop in.

When they finally got to the Lake and put Christie back in her shed, they took the jet boat, Essie's most prized possession, across. It was bumpy and cold. They all jogged into the house and threw themselves in. The clock on the wall said it was about 7:00 pm.

"I'm hungry," whined Arthur as he dropped onto the old white couch, sending a fine layer of dust into the air.

"I'm not surprised," snapped Essie, who dropped next to him, "Go make a bowl of cereal."

Arthur sighed, "I still don't get how that stuff qualifies as food. It's just little bits floating in milk."

Merlin chuckled as he sat across from them in the maroon armchair. Essie snorted.

"It's satisfying!"

"It's garbage."

She huffed, then quipped, "Fine. Starve."

Merlin shook his head, as Essie shot up suddenly, and announced, "I have to go do my rounds at the shop and replace the old with the new."

Arthur yawned.

"I think I'm going to turn in after a bit of grub"

"So early?"

"Yeah," he replied lifting himself up and making his way towards the pantry where there was cereal. Essie shrugged and turned past the kitchen out the back door into the night.

Merlin leaned back into the cushions as Arthur continued to make his cereal with much too much milk.

Merlin wondered what on earth the Tree of Life could be foreshadowing. Obviously, Arthur's return couldn't be too beneficial to the balance of order. The veil between the physical and spiritual worlds after death was thin and easily rippled. What if other _things_ had escaped just as Arthur had passed over? Old Ancient, restless beings… beings powerful enough to cross?

What could that mean for them?


	8. Chapter 8

Essie liked to believe that she knew everything about Merlin. He was her best friend, and _she_ had told him… nearly everything. She liked to believe that she was the one whom Merlin trusted the most.

But belief is for children.

She knew she would always come second to Arthur. The great King Arthur. As much as she admired him, sometimes she was a bit jealous of their relationship. Essie had no one else, and it would break her heart if Merlin went off with Arthur. She would understand, of course… but it wouldn't hurt any less.

One thing Essie knew nothing of however, was Merlin's magic. He had always refrained from using it. She didn't know why and she felt like she couldn't begin to understand either. It was complicated. That was all she could guess.

Arthur was wondering the same thing, as he lay in his bed that morning.

He had turned in last night after Essie had finally agreed to prepare him a sandwich after she came back in. She ended up making it into quite the feast for the both of them- Merlin had fallen asleep in the armchair, and he looked like he was in such a deep sleep that they didn't bother waking him up.

As they ate their burgers in silence (they never had much to talk about), Arthur asked her a few questions he didn't feel completely comfortable asking his old friend. Obviously, it was all about the very same man.

"So," he started between chews, "You've known Merlin for how long?"

"Three years," smiled Essie as she swallowed, "I pushed him out of the way of a truck."

Arthur nodded slowly as he digested this (and his burger), guessing _truck_ was some dangerous creature or something. Would Merlin have been dead if Essie were not there? That was a strange and alien notion he didn't want to explore.

"Although," she added, looking up to him, "nothing compared to you two. I mean, half a millennia? That's impressive. Not to mention you've saved his life several times."

"Not as many times as he must've saved mine," Arthur replied slowly, "Essie… does Merlin ever… you know… use his-"

He made a wiggly motion with his fingers which made Essie snort lightly.

"Magic?"

He nodded. She shrugged.

"No, he doesn't very much, and I have a feeling that it's been that way for a long, long time," she smiled, "I've only ever seen him do it once."

Arthur raised an eyebrow, "when?"

"I was out on the Lake when this storm hit out of nowhere. As I was coming in the whole boat flipped near the shore. I fell out the boat and hit my head on the dock and cut my arm up really badly."

She pulled up her sleeve to reveal a long scar up her arm. It was white against her brown skin and there were small patches of discoloration.

"I lost a lot of blood. I was dying, I think. Then Merlin comes out of nowhere, and… well, I remember his eyes going all gold and all the pain just vanished. Next thing I knew, I was in here, on that couch, and he was above me rubbing this grey stuff on it. That's when we officially became friends."

Arthur felt the corners of his mouth draw up a bit at the story. Essie looked humbled.

"I could never thank him enough and he just said, 'an eye for an eye.'"

"But you haven't seen him use it any other time?"

Essie shook her head, as she finished up her burger.

"I've never asked him about it because I never had the courage to," she answered, leaning against the kitchen counter, "it's not that I'm afraid of him getting angry or anything. It's just… I don't know, it was just something we've never talked about.

"But you can though," she added suddenly, "if he will talk to anyone about it, it's you."

Arthur deliberated this notion until he had drifted off to sleep, then after he opened his eyes to new light. He knew he could ask him, but the subject still made him a little uncomfortable. To him, Merlin had only told him he had magic less than two weeks ago, even though in reality it was a couple of centuries. Not to mention, how as he supposed to open the conversation?

He got up slowly, dressed (Merlin promised they would get him new clothes soon, after Arthur's complaint), and went downstairs. Merlin was still asleep in the armchair, to Arthur's bemusement. He could hear a bit of commotion outside, so Arthur guessed Essie was doing some work, as it was accompanied by a fair share of cussing.

A little later, Merlin jerked awake suddenly, as Arthur was spreading some butter on bread. He was a bit disgruntled and his stomach was rumbling loudly from hunger.

"You could'uv woken me up," he grumbled as he rubbed his eyes. Arthur smirked.

"You were out like an old man… oh wait."

"Ha, ha," mocked Merlin as he leaned back, taking a deep breath, "Where's Essie?"

"I'm here," quipped a voice behind Arthur. The door snapped shut loudly behind her as she stomped in, carrying a newspaper and a sour mood.

"What's with you?" muttered Arthur as he turned back to his bread. She huffed.

"_Someone _graffitied the store. _Again_," she complained loudly, "'The Gods Are Watching,' it says. What on _earth _is that supposed to _mean. _I swear to these 'gods', if I ever catch who's been doing this, I shall turn absolutely monstrous."

"Like you aren't already?" teased Merlin, as he finally started to lift himself.

"Oh, shut up, granddad," she muttered back, which earned a chuckle from him back, before she turned solemn "that's not all… something's happened."

Her tone had suddenly turned serious which made them both look up.

"What is it?"

"It's Guy Schmeltzer. He's dead."

**BUT GUESS WHO WROTE AN EXTRA CHAPTER THIS WEEK? Do review!****  
**


	9. Chapter 9

"Dead?" echoed Merlin. Essie nodded, handing him the article. It read:

_GUY SCHMELTZER, 22, DIES AFTER MYSTERIOUS AND SUDDEN PARALYSIS_

_Those of you who have been fans of football will know who Guy Schmeltzer is. Famous around Cameron for his amazing skill, he was a valued member of society. So it is with heavy hearts we inform the public of his tragic passing this morning at 6:43 in St. Arthur's Hospital._

_A couple of days ago, Schmeltzer was admitted into the hospital with serious injuries, after going out to cut wood. He was reported completely paralysed, but not a lot of information was released, as his girlfriend, Cashlin Vine, stated that privacy was all they had left, and would like to be left in peace._

_Upon his death, however, a bit more information was shared. In addition to being paralyzed, Schmeltzer's skin had also turned an ashy grey, and his temperature had dropped to a stone cold 23__o__ C. He drifted off muttering to those close to him, reportedly muttering, "They're coming back."_

_The date of the funeral is not yet set, but will be held sometime in August, as it was his favourite month._

"Well," muttered Arthur, looked like that Belle woman wasn't completely amiss."

"Seems not," sighed Essie, stealing some of Arthur's breakfast with dirty hands, "Shame. He wasn't too bad a guy."

"Will you be going to the funeral?"

"I said he wasn't too bad, not a saintly friend," she murmured, turning to Merlin, "What now?"

"I think we should go see this Cashlin Vine," he said, his eyebrows drawn together, "it seems she might know better than anyone else."

"Ugh," exhaled Essie, "the Vines. Pretentious and dramatic, that's what I'd call them."

"Do you know where they live?"

"Well, not really, but they shouldn't be too hard to find with a bit of asking around…"

She didn't look to ecstatic at the idea of asking random people where her school colleague lived, but as it was critical to their little adventure, she accepted it anyway.

"So… we know it's 'Old Girl' for sure then?" put in Arthur, looking between the two.

Merlin nodded, "I think it was pretty much verified after finding the symbol. Unless she's proven wrong, we will have to believe in Old Slate's story."

It took a bit of driving around town before they found the right place. Merlin took the courtesy of asking a few amblers, and eventually they got the exact address: 17 Rose Street.

The road there was a bit rough, and the few houses they passed were all the same boxy white-washed single levels. They were a bit closer to the forest, and eventually, right at the end of the road, they found a small cabin just off the street. It was more isolated than the rest, and much shabbier, but it was obvious that its inhabitants had tried vainly to make it seem as modern and classy as possible.

The porch was small and obviously unprofessionally made, and was painted a stark white to seem as polished as possible. There was a small gray couch set right outside a hand-painted light blue screened door. The knocker was polished to the point of its fake metal sheen rubbing off and a bit rusted.

Arthur walked purposefully up to the door, followed by Merlin, and then Essie hanging in the back, scowling at the chimes hanging from above the dusty couch, which was identical to her own.

Arthur knocked solidly three times. The sound of scurried footsteps came from inside, and the door opened suddenly to reveal a small strawberry blonde girl with braces.

"Hello," greeted Arthur in a slightly unsure tone to the teen in front of him, "er, is Cashlin home?"

"Yeah," she replied breathlessly, "yeah, she's home. Are you her friends?"

"Er-"

"Hi, Alexis," Essie forced. The girl's head craned to peek at her.

"Who're you?"

She sighed before replying in the same forced tone, "I'm Essie. I was in the same grade as your sister?"

Alexis peered at her for a bit more, obviously blank. Essie huffed.

"I-er-" she glanced between Arthur and Merlin before saying pointedly, "I was also known as… Boggy?"

Something clicked in Alexis's head, as her mouth stretched into a wicked grin.

"Boggy! Right, how can I forget you?" she said snidely, "how come _you're _here? It's been years and years, plus you were never BFF's with Cash, were you?"

"We just heard about Guy," injected Merlin, "we're so sorry."

The girl looked a bit saddened before she looked back up to Arthur with doe-like eyes.

"I haven't seen _you _around before? I would remember," she gushed. Arthur turned slightly pink.

"Er, I'm Ar-"

"Artie," exclaimed Essie suddenly, making Alexis and him jump, "his name is Artie."

Arthur didn't look too happy with the name, but realized too that his own name was too conspicuous.

"Come in, Artie, Boggy… and friend," she added, stepping to the side. They came into a dimly lit hallway which led to a kitchen. To their right was another door leading to a small well-furnished living room.

"One sec," Alexis said, before turning and running up the stairs that bordered the other end of the hallway outside the living room, to get her sister.

A few minutes later, an older identical to Alexis entered the room. Despite her boyfriend dying just that morning, she still looked knock dead beautiful. Long strawberry blonde hair, a pointed nose, gentle blush on her cheek's apples, and dewy brown eyes came together in a small dainty package. She swayed her hips as she walked in, sitting across from the three sitting on the couch onto a loveseat next to the empty fireplace.

Arthur noted how soft she looked, from her hair to her skin to her figure. Essie incomparably had stringy hair and a couple of blemishes on her forehead she tried to hide under side fringes

"Al told me _Boggy_ was here," she smiled toothily, revealing straight teeth. She was like a TV show character, "How are you… Effie?"

"Essie," she grumbled back. Merlin smirked despite himself.

"Essie," echoed Cashlin, leaning back and sighing deeply, "I didn't know you personally but did know of you. Al also told me you had friends."

She looked Arthur up and down critically, before shining a knowing smile. Essie introduced them clumsily, stumbling a bit on 'Artie' which earned her a hard glare from him.

"We heard about Guy," continued Essie, glancing over at Arthur, "so sorry for your loss."

She nodded sadly, her eyes getting shinier.

"He was the love of my life," she said softly, "I still can't quite grasp it, which is probably why I'm so stoic right now."

A single tear fell onto her lap.

"I didn't know him personally," Merlin said bracingly, "but I hear he was amazing at football."

"That's all people seem to know about him, it seems," she continued in the same hushed tone, "no one knew him like I did. He was such a colorful character, and so full of kindness."

Essie snorted at this, but passed it off as a violent cough.

"Al is bringing some drinks," Cashlin informed them, shaking her head which caused ripples through her blonde hair like a river, trying to recover.

There was an awkward silence before Alexis came in with a dirty tray of tall lemonades. She offered the tallest glass to Arthur, which had a small straw in it. Merlin got the mug and Cashlin got a glass similar to Arthur's.

Essie was left with a grubby plastic cup, which had spilled a bit over the edge. Alexis smirked as she gave it to her, which turned Essie's expression even more sour.

"So, Merlin," continued Cashlin after a long draw from her glass (Merlin had a gift for people to warm up to him quickly like that), "I haven't seen you around before?"

"I've lived in the mountains in Winchester. I've only recently moved in with Essie, along with- Artie."

Cashlin nodded slowly.

"You want to know, don't you?" she said slowly, looking between the strange triad, "what I haven't told the papers?"

"Er-"

"It's alright, I know it'll all have to come out sometime," she cut across Merlin, "_they _won't leave me alone until I do. What good will it do, now he's… gone."

There was a short silence before she continued, "His case was different from other cases the doctor was working on. His skin… it was cold, and hard. The fact that he couldn't play football was nothing compared to when we found out it would be a miracle if he even survived."

"What do you mean, 'different from the doctor's other cases'?" interjected Arthur, "did the physician see anything similar in other people?"

Cashlin fidgeted with the hem of her floral dress, biting her lip.

"Well, technically I'm not supposed to reveal too much about other people, but… well there were two others. Kids. There was… a little girl. Her name was- Angie or something. Her older brother also had the same- he was relatively young, about 16.

"Their cases were a bit different from Guy though," she continued, her words picking up pace, "not as serious, although they were in a coma, I think. They weren't as ashy grey as him, but their temperatures were about the same."

"Where were they found?" pressed Essie. She guessed that the kids weren't in the news because they weren't famous football players or native to Cameron.

"Around the same place, near a small clearing" she answered, her eyes flickering, "a bit closer to the road. They were found by that horrid woman."

"Agatha Belle?" guessed Merlin.

"Yes, her," she nodded, "though most call her Old Slate. I call her the Hag, though, that terrible woman. You know what I think? I think she was the one who did it."

"You think it was Agatha Belle?" repeated Arthur. Cashlin nodded her head, her fingers trembling.

"No sort of poison can do that to a person without there being a cure," she reasoned, "no, it was definitely the Hag, no doubt about it. She was the one who found Guy a_nd _the kids, and she never actually told anyone."

"Poison?"

"The doctor told us that it might have been a bite from some bug, or he could've ingested some oleander by accident. But that's rubbish. Stupid."

Essie then raised the point, "wasn't Old Slate the one who reported them in the first place?"

Cashlin shook her head vigorously, "No! I was the one who found Guy. He didn't come as fast as he said he would, so I was a bit orried. Then I heard the Hag scream, so I came to investigate and found him… on the ground. Writhing."

She looked haunted by the memory.

So much for helping others, thought Arthur about Old Slate.

"I had to run back and get Alexis to help me carry him to our car. Lucky it was a new car- Mazda, new model from Winchester- so we got to the hospital relatively fast-" (Essie scowled at this) "-when we got there we found out about the other kids. They were found by the Hag but she hadn't bothered with them. In the end, it was some berry-picking man who brought them in."

There was a short silence as they took a few more sips of their lemonade, digesting the new information. Cashlin was trembling but smiled at them, happy to be sharing her story. She was the new Queen of Tragedy, after all. She had to be gracious.

"So the news said some stuff about Guy saying things before he drifted off," put in Essie bluntly, ignoring the slight drop in Cashlin's expression, "what would he say?"

There was a long pause as Cashlin took in the question, her eyes stuck to Essie's forced facade of grief.

"He… he said strange, scary things," she whispered, still staring hard at Essie, "He was… delusional.

"It never really made sense, but he got more and more desperate as he got closer to… he would say things about… trees? Witches and Kings? I don't know, it was mostly nonsense.

"He also said something about some… place, it was, er… Rollright Stones or something."

Merlin nodded consolingly, "it must have been hard- did you say witches?"

"Yeah, some elder woman or something. That was what stuck out a lot, yeah."

"Anything else? What did he say towards the end?" asked Arthur slowly, trying to be as little as blunt as possible. He wasn't Essie, who hated this woman for some reason. She was relatively pleasant, other than a biting need to tell details. He wondered how the press _hadn't _gotten the whole story.

At this question, Cashlin drew out a handkerchief from her pocket and blew into it loudly, before weeping (quite out of nowhere, thought Arthur), "his last words to me were the most emotional for sure. He said, 'I can't see it.'"

There was a silence as she wept silently, before taking a deep breath and saying shrilly, "like, what does that even _mean_? Did he mean the Light? God? _Me?_ I don't get it! I don't understand the last thing he ever said to me… you'd think he'd tell me he loves me instead or something, but…"

She continued to weep as Arthur shuffled his feet awkwardly. Strange how girls tend to just burst into emotion. Essie did the same, but it was usually in anger. Anger came to her fast.

Thank God Merlin was a man. He wouldn't know what to do with an emotional servant.

"Er," started Merlin, "we should leave you, let you grieve."

"Yes, I'm not quite at my best," Cashlin sniffed, "I'm sorry…"

"It's alright," tried Essie vainly, "it's a bit… early."

Cashlin nodded, still tearful.

Alexis crept into the room, who had obviously been listening at the door, and sat by her sister.

"You okay, Cash?"

"I'm fine, Al. Show the guests out, please, I need to retouch my make up."

"Yeah, 'course," she nodded, before getting up and gesturing the three out into the hallway. Her expression of concern melted into a sheepish one.

Merlin was now sure of the culprit being the Old Girl or Elder Woman, as Ms. Cashlin Vine had put it. How to kill it though, or even capture it? It must have been powerful to turn a grown man into, what he thinks, stone. They'd have to do a bit more research… luckily that was easier nowadays.

"Artie, was it?" Alexis shot at Arthur suddenly, as they moved to the front door.

"Er, yes," he answered, obviously taken back.

Alexis flashed a wired smile and handed him a small slip of paper, just as they reached the door. He unfolded it to reveal a string of numbers.

"Erm…"

"It's my number," she informed him cheekily, winking at him. Arthur's cheeks flamed suddenly, not understanding what on earth she meant by _number_, but had suddenly started to catch her drift.

Merlin pulled away from his thoughts at this, struggling to ignore the pull at the corner of his lips. Essie just giggled, "Go for the fish in your own pond, kid."

Alexis turned to her, grin waning.

"Yeah, alright," she snapped, "I'll also try not to _fall int_o _it_."

This time Essie was the one who flared red, and left out the door without a word.

**NEW CHAPTER NEXT TUESDAY. Do review! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi hi guys, exciting chapter this week, thrice times exciting next week though, which will also be the last chapter of this part of the series. I will leave more information about the next story to this series in the next chapter, and its VERY IMPORTANT so DO READ IT :) enjoyy~**

"There is no doubt in my mind that this isn't 'Old Girl' anymore," said Arthur, determined to forget about his awkward encounter with Alexis. They all clambered into Christie the car, slightly squished and sweaty.

"You are right," nodded Merlin, "but how to defeat it? And how to cure the kids in the hospital?"

"We just need to do a bit of research," Essie suggested, still red about Alexis' words, "we can head to the library, I'm sure it had some stuff. It has loads of reference books from your time, though we'll only be able to take notes."

She started the car with a loud cough from the engine. She wiggled the keys until it finally let out a loud pop, and they were on their way.

Upon arriving at town square and parking in an even worse position than the last time they had been there, they climbed out the stuffy box on wheels and set for the largest building in the area. Gothic in architecture, it towered above the rest of town square like a temple for the Gods. It was also the cleanest building in Cameron. The heritage of the town was the most prized- the residents, every single one, guarded it fiercely. Including Essie and especially Merlin. No doubt Arthur as well.

They skipped steps going up to the large entrance, and speed walked through.

Arthur was in awe- rows upon rows of books; small, big, old, and new. There were even ladders for the shelves, which wheeled right and left. The painted ceiling was very high to make room for the numerous levels, the overhead mural depicting a meeting in King's Court. Arthur couldn't recognize what King stood at the front of the table in the painting.

"It's you with a beard," whispered Essie, concealing a grin, "it's good old Artie with a beard."

Arthur scowled at her but his expression quickly turned back to one of amazement.

With a bit of direction from some old librarians that reminded Arthur of Guards of the Scrolls from his own time, they climbed up six flights of stairs to get to the reference section.

"We'll have to borrow a couple of note taking papers from them," said Merlin softly, pointing to the strict looking librarian sitting at the round table that centered the entire floor.

Essie nodded and went to ask, as Merlin and Arthur went in search of a place to sit, which was fairly easy as there was close to no one this high up the library floors, except for an old couple in the corner and a preteen reading between the shelves.

"Are some of Gaius' books here as well?" pondered Arthur as he sat across from Merlin.

Merlin scratched his chin and answered, "no, I don't think those will be around- I only have a couple in my possession but as far as I know, the ones I have are the last ones in existence."

Arthur nodded slowly before looking up at him and saying slowly, "Merlin… do you miss them?"

He looked up from his satchel quickly, his expression cold.

"Of course I do," he answered softly, "every single day. I watched them all wither away, didn't I?"

The reply was slightly harsher than Arthur thought it would be.

"You took the short cut," mumbled Merlin, "I've been around for the whole time. All my friends are dead, my family. Every friend or even acquaintance I've ever made since are also all gone. After a while I learned to stop making friends."

"What about Essie?"

Merlin shrugged, before answering slowly, "I don't know… she's an exception, I guess. She is, in some ways, lonelier than I am."

Arthur absorbed this, wondering how on earth that could be possible, before he asked, "Where did she even come from?"

Before Merlin could answer, a voice said, "I'll tell you where she came from- the section cross checking ancient lore and the history of the forest."

Essie dropped a large dusty book on the table, along with a couple leafs of paper and various pens. The bang resulting made the stern looking librarian look up and give them the stink eye.

"Alrighty," she sighed, nudging Merlin up the bench a bit as she sat down, "okay, if this thing is of the infamous 'old religion' then it should be near the beginning, if it's old."

"Um, it doesn't literally mean _old _religion," put in Merlin, "although, sort of… okay, I don't remember seeing it so you're right, yeah."

She flipped through it a bit, running her gloved finger down the list of ink scrawls on the old yellow paper. It was so old it was necessary to wear plastic gloves- last time Arthur remembered seeing the specific record Essie was observing, it was relatively new and had a very rich texture. Now it was close to dust.

"Oh, here's something," she said suddenly, "it says there was some steed guy who went out to fight God knows, and he was found turned completely into stone."

She showed it to Merlin, who squinted at it.

"Happened in King Uther's reign," he murmured.

"Well I haven't heard of it before, and neither have you," said Arthur, "so I guess there aren't any more documented encounters based on what we have."

"It doesn't say Old Girl or Old Woman or anything," added Essie, "you know what, I'll go look for more in the lore section."

She got up to go explore, as Merlin checked more of the book, just in case. He made a few scurried notes on the lined paper in front of him. Arthur retreated to look through the only other book at the table- the second edition of records.

After quite some time of dull work, Essie returned with a handful of small books, including _Celtic Folklores of the Forest _and a frayed blue hardcover book. She dropped them on the desk loudly, this time issuing a shush from the librarian, who was eying them suspiciously.

"You won't ever guess what I found," she trilled excitedly, "tons and tons of stuff on Elder trees. Turns out they're considered really unlucky in some parts of the world and a ward of evil in others. Also-"

She gestured to the blue hardcover, pushing it into Arthur's hands.

"It's a book on your adventures, Artie," she informed him, as he turned it over. Embezzled on the front in silver cursive were the words _King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table._

He opened it in curiosity and dread. The words were small and pushed together.

"I read a bit of it," she continued, looking to the grinning Merlin, "you're in it too."

"Am I?" he said in surprise.

"Of course you are," she rolled her eyes, "I mean, you were destined and stuff. In _this_ you're a wise old psychic that is like a century older than Arthur."

Arthur snickered, "wise?"

Merlin rolled his eyes too, "psychic? I'm not psychic, the Dragon was."

"Okay, yeah," said Essie, teasingly suspicious, before she sat back down and snatched the book from Arthur, "let's return to the task at hand. I found tons of stuff."

She opened a couple of books, bits of paper bookmarking it.

"I looked through all of 'em," she started, "I also popped downstairs for some stuff on this 'Rollright Stones" Cashlin Vine said Schmeltzer had mentioned. Look."

She pointed to a short poem in one of the books: 

_"Seven long strides thou shalt take,_

_And if Long Compton thou shalt see,_

_King of England thou shalt be."_

"Seven?" said Arthur, "the same thing Old Slate said Schmeltzer told her before he started… writhing."

"It's what an old witch said to some king and his knights who wanted to take over. They would have to take seven steps, and if they couldn't see this Long Compton place, which must have been a village or town or something, then they can't be supreme ruler. It's continued on the next page, see- the king says to her in response:

_Stick, stock, stone_

_As King of England I shall be known._

"They did the challenge the witch set them, but they ended up not being able to see Long Compton after seven strides, so the witch replied- 

_As Long Compton thou canst not see_

_King of England thou shalt not be._

_Rise up stick and stand still stone_

_For King of England thou shalt be none;_

_Thou and thy men hoar stones shall be_

_And I myself an eldern tree."_

"It all makes sense," nodded Merlin slowly, "it's known for witches to take a certain form of nature and base their power in it. This witch, Old Girl, Old Woman, whatever they call her, she based her powers in Elder trees. She became famous for it."

"So yours would be dragons, right?" pressed Essie, turning to him.

"I don't know, I guess so," said Merlin vacantly, as he read the passage another time over, "What did Agatha Belle say, about asking permission of an elder tree?"

"Oh yeah," Essie pointed to the book by Arthur's elbow, "yeah, it says in here, it talks about Scandinavian folklores and things, and English stuff too- it says you have to ask permission of the elder tree or the witch will come for your 'soul'. The exact words were: _Old girl, give me some of thy wood and I will give thee some of mine when I grow into a tree._"

"Okay, it all makes sense then," said Arthur, "it explains why Guy Schmeltzer talked of witches and kings and knights and the such. This witch must have gotten so well-known and infamous that people got afraid that any elder tree they cut down could be her, so they ask permission just in case."

"The witch must have fed off of their energy or soul or whatever, for more power," suggested Essie, "because either way she gets the person's soul, if the person cuts an elder tree that happens to be or belong to her."

"The problem is," interjected Merlin, "how do we kill her?"

"Well, I couldn't find any of that in the books, but I did a bit of surfing," Essie said. Arthur raised his eyebrows.

"On the internet," she added, for his benefit (which made it no more obvious for him).

"What did you find?"

"Well, her formal name is actually Elder Mother, for one thing. There isn't much concrete info, but a lot of websites tell of this farmer who tried to shoot her, which did no good. So the farmer's _grandma _got some burning cinders from the fire with a shovel and threw it at her, which made her burn."

"Logical," agreed Merlin, as Arthur nodded.

"Okay, but one thing left," said Arthur slowly, "what about the kids? Is there a cure?"

Essie's beaming face fell.

"No, I couldn't find anything," she said, a little quieter as the librarian shot a glare at them.

Arthur sighed. He couldn't stop thinking about the kids no one paid attention to.

"But how come we haven't heard of this witch before?" pressed Merlin, "If she is so apparently well known?"

"Maybe she wasn't so famous yet," suggested Essie, "I mean, the books I was looking at were relatively younger than this lot. And according to this ass-kicking cinder-throwing grandma, she killed her."

She gestured the old records book the boys were still examining.

"There's that," he agreed, "otherwise she would have been marked down in the record we found from my father's reign."

"Alright, that's that then," she said, obviously excited, "let's go get rid of this son of a-"

"Excuse me," came a flat tone behind them. It was the librarian, "is there something you need?"

"No, sir," said Merlin graciously, "we were just on our way. Thank you for the material."

They started to get up, collecting the few books they were allowed to take out. The librarian continued to peer at them through spectacles with narrowed eyes, muttering as he dusted the old reference books they left behind

As they checked out the books Arthur spied the gilded blue hardcover under Essie's arm.

"You're taking that out?"

"_Duh,"_ she smiled crookedly, "I wanna know more about you guys, even if it is a bit chastising."

Merlin shook his head as he chuckled, signing out the books he was carrying in Essie's name.

They returned home around 6:00 pm, and the small red sun was starting to retreat behind the horizon, the sky turning pink as clouds patterned like fish fins shimmered in the dying light.

"I say we get out there and slay the thing," said Essie fiercely, pounding her fist as she reentered their home, then flung herself on her couch, kicking off her boots at the door to reveal mismatched wooly socks.

"For the first time, I agree with you," said Arthur, as he flung himself next to her (nearly breaking the couch). Essie giggled.

"There must be a cure," persisted Merlin, taking a seat in the armchair, his long ponytail swishing. He stroked his chin slowly.

"What about mandrakes?" suggested Essie.

"What?" Merlin raised his head.

"Mandrakes," she repeated, "it worked in Harry Potter."

"Mandrakes don't actually exist, Essie," he sighed, retreating back to his thoughtful position.

"Says you."

"Harry Potter?" Arthur inquired as he looked to her, fearing it was important.

"Oh, I forget you've missed so much," sighed Essie, as if to pity him, "Well listen, Harry Potter is this boy wizard-"

"Like Merlin?"

"Yeah, basically but he's like eleven years old, not eleven million…"

Essie's voice was a grey background noise as Merlin deliberated. If there was any possible solution it would have popped up by now. But turning to stone- how do you _feed_ a stone any possible antidote?

If the Elder Mother is such an ancient and powerful witch of the Old Religion, then surely she could have turned her victims into stone instantly? Unless she was weak… or worse, she wanted them to suffer. That made her more dangerous. Who would want children to suffer?

A cure, a cure… the familiar sense of pressure was returning to Merlin. The kids' lives were in the balance, the doctors didn't understand. This took potions and alchemy, like Essie so excitedly embraced, not diverse chemical compounds that needed materials from corners of the world with express permission. The solution was a simple one, it had to be something simpler…

"Wait, what did you say?" exclaimed Merlin suddenly.

Essie stopped talking. There was a short silence.

"Erm… I just said how mandrakes had to come to a certain stage before they were able to-"

"No, no, your exact words, before that," pressed Merlin.

"I said, er, 'they had to use these dangerous plants that would kill you just be hearing it to heal people'?"

Merlin rubbed his fingers together in deep thought, his mind racing. Suddenly he sprang up and grabbed his satchel from the hook by the door. He rummaged through it before finding what he needed.

"Aha!"

"Flowers," stated Arthur, plainly confused, as was Essie.

"Not just any flowers," beamed Merlin, "_Elder tree flowers. _I collected them when we visited the Grove- they have several uses, they can cure burns and cuts, and blindness and seizures-"

"That escalated quickly," murmured Essie.

"-But they are also a _part of the Elder Mother,"_ said Merlin impatiently, turning to kitchen and pulling out a kettle.

"Wait, I don't understand, explain," commanded Arthur, in his old kingly fashion.

Merlin exhaled, then explained rapidly, "when it comes to certain conditions and poisons, the answer to its antidote can be in the poison itself. Mix it with a few base elements, and voila, you have a simple but _effective _antidote!"

"So because the Elder Mother based her magic in the Elder tree…"

"It can reverse her magic, yes!"

Essie hopped a few times in sheer excitement.

"Amazing! Genius!" they both gushed.

"It's really nothing," blushed Merlin, as he carefully set a single petal from the Elder tree blossom into the water, before setting it to boil. He turned and beamed.

"Well, now you know what comes next. Time to catch us an evil witch." 

**'Till next week, amigos. Do review! :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Last Chapter! It was fun doing this and I ****_do _****hope you guys will agree with me when I say I can't wait to continue the series.**

**I will be posting the first chapter of the next story next week on Tuesday, per usual, and will leave the link at the end of this when I do. If you found this story interesting enough, do follow me for the next couple of installments!**

**PLEASE review, as your opinions are very important and I want to do ****_everything _****in my power to make this as amazing as possible!**

**Enjoy!~**

"A shovel- will we need a shovel?" asked Essie frantically.

"Why on earth would we need a-?"

"What if we need to dig something up? You can never have a shortage of shovels," interrupted Essie, holding up her dirty spade. Arthur looked at her, his eyes dulled.

"In this case, I think we can risk it," interjected Merlin calmly, as he packed the last of his medicine bag, and making sure everything was there, from water to emergency antidotes.

Arthur lifted Excalibur and examined it closely. It felt cold but unbelievably natural in his hand.

Essie nodded and put the spade back, then second guessed and packed it anyway. Her Jake the Dog backpack was full to the rim, and was heavy and noisy when she put it on.

"Okay, fine," she grumbled, unpacking slowly when Arthur stared at her again. She settled for a lighter, a flashlight, and some chocolate bars, all in a small brown satchel.

"Alright, let's head out before it's completely dark," announced Arthur, heading to the door. They all came out to a dark cyan sky, the forest black in the distance past the glassy lake.

After they climbed into the speed boat and bumped over the lake waves, they clambered into Christie the car and set off into the dark forest, making way for the Grove, by Old Slate's hovel. Essie wondered why it always seemed to be dark when they decided to go into the forest. Just her luck.

"So we're definitely going with the plan?" inquired Essie, glancing into her mirror to see Arthur, who was in the back, as she drove over the uneven dirt road. Merlin looked to Arthur as well, as this was his area.

"Yes, we have to stick to it, it's the best thing to do," confirmed Arthur, then looked to Merlin, taking a deep breath.

"If it comes to it, you use your magic."

Merlin merely nodded, not saying a word and looked straight ahead of him. Arthur didn't feel completely reassured but accepted it.

"You know, I can try to distract her as you do your thing," suggested Essie, a little reluctant with her assigned role, "instead of-"

"Definitely not," said Arthur with finality. Essie glanced to Merlin, who looked a bit two sided. He knew she was capable, but it was her first time after all.

"Merlin, you can't be serious?" added Arthur.

Merlin contemplated a bit more, before saying bracingly, "Well- well, yes, Essie, I think it would be better if you just stuck to manning the flashlight… it is quite an important job."

"Yeah, yeah," sighed Essie, feeling like a coddled child. She was much too used to being treated like this, and she hated it more than anything else.

They eventually arrived by Old Slate's burrow, the sky now almost pitch black. Stars were peeking through here and there, the moon was masked by wispy clouds. They got out and shut the doors as quietly as they could. They first set out to make sure Agatha Belle was asleep or gone, which she was the latter.

"Must've moved back to her little shed thing," shrugged Essie, as she switched on the flashlight.

They followed the beam of light Essie piloted towards the Grove, as quietly as possible. Arthur had his sword out, pointing it ahead of him, his eyes quick and alert. Merlin came in the back, his hands clenching and unclenching, as he felt the familiar sense of _something is going to kill me from behind _like the old days with Arthur and the Knights.

When they got there, Merlin and Essie took their positions, as Arthur bravely strutted to the biggest Elder Tree that dawned the symbol of the Old Religion. He raised his sword high, braced for an attack or an explosion or some sort of fiasco, and swiped it right into the thick trunk.

Nothing happened.

Arthur waited in a ready position, then turned to Merlin, shrugging. Merlin and Essie looked to each other in confusion.

All was dark and quiet.

"I think-"

Suddenly a shadow lunged out of the branches of the tree on top of Arthur, pushing him to the ground, knocking his sword out of his hand.

Essie and Merlin exclaimed in surprise, Essie shining light as Arthur and the shadow struggled on the ground wrestling for the upper hand.

Merlin outstretched his hands instinctively, and muttered a few words. Essie had a start when she realized Merlin's eyes were glowing gold.

The fallen sword flew to Arthur's outstretched hand, then he swung it at the dark figure. The struggle grew more violent.

Essie, seeing the problem, lunged out their little hiding spot, not listening to Merlin's protests.

"OI!" she screamed, waving her hands frantically, "HEY, LOSER. YEAH, I'M TALKING TO YOU, OLD GIRL. OVER HERE!"

The shadow looked up momentarily, distracted by Essie's weak insults, which gave Arthur the opportunity to overpower her. He grabbed her and put her into a choke hold, prepared to slit her throat when Merlin suddenly screamed, "STOP!"

Everyone froze, including Arthur, his sword still aloft, ready to strike down at any moment. Essie took the opportunity to shine the light into the face of the captive, and gasped.

"No. Way."

Arthur looked into her face a well, and was dumbfounded by who he saw.

"Alexis Vine? What-?"

The small girl smiled wickedly, her braces flashing in the light. Her hair was mussed up and had various twigs and leaves in it. Her once tidy clothes were slashed and ripped. But her eyes, which used to be a bright amber color, were now enlarged black pupils, her stare a dead one.

"Yes," she said in a quiet raspy voice that wasn't her own, "Yes, poor little Alexis Vine was your villain all along."

Merlin raised his arm to perform a spell, but Alexis whipped her head around to him, her black eyes momentarily gold. Merlin flew backwards into a tree, groaning as he fell to the ground. Her eyes glimmered once more, and Arthur flew off of her, his sword falling to the ground. He collided with the prime Elder Tree. He groaned as well, air rushing out of his lungs.

Alexis stooped down and collected the sword, a greedy smile playing on her lips. She looked to Essie, her eyes cold.

"I won't bother," she seethed, pointing her sword directly at her. Essie was frozen to the spot, at a complete loss at what to do. On flick of her finger, and Essie flew forward, right at Alexis's feet. She ate a mouthful of leaves along with it.

"Stupid mortals," she mocked softy, looking at each of the three in turn, "who would have guessed that this stupid little girl would be responsible for the murder of three people? I had to settle for this weak form when I was revived. _So_ many dark thoughts float in her mind. Eclipsed by her older sister's beauty, jealous of the relationship she holds, no one paid attention to her.

"I started off small, with those petty little children, turning them slowly to stone. And then eventually I had enough power to kill the one she hated the most- that oaf by the name of Guy Schmeltzer."

Arthur struggled to his feet, but Alexis merely flicked her hand and he fell again.

"I'm still not at my full power, believe it or not," she continued, "I couldn't kill those people immediately. I used to turn kings and whole armies to stone with a mere glance! But alas, I am still too weak to do so. But not for long."

"How are you so weak?" growled Merlin, who was still struggling against the witch's power. Alexis giggled, completely out of character.

"Because you see, boy Emrys, crossing to the world of the living is quarrelsome. When your dear King Arthur of Camelot, "she flashed a smile at the panting Arthur, "returned from his grave, he ripped the veil that existed between the two planes. Those powerful enough have been able to escape damnation, including me.

"This, however, did rob me of quite a lot of strength, and so I retreated back into my chosen and preferred form, an Elder Tree. All I needed was a gullible and weak host to pour my being into. And here I am."

She was pacing between them, fidgeting with the hem of her sweater as she spoke, swinging the sword in her hand,

"I am not the only one to have escaped," she continued happily, turning her dead eyes to Arthur, who was still stooped, his eyes fixed on his sword, "Listen to me, Prince!"

She clutched his chin and forced him to look at her, which he did hatefully.

"The ancient spirit," she told him, her voice different, now even raspier than before, her breath fowl, "he who blindly destroys himself, has returned from the world he so _stupidly _dreamt about in his living days. He will take hold of his destined vessel and continue his work anew, ripping this world apart in his vain attempt to escape it."

"Yeah?" came Essie's voice, who had broken free of her weaker magic clutch, and had crawled over with a violent expression, "EAT THIS, BARKFACE!"

She raised her flashlight before Alexis could even think of raising a hand, and swung it down on her face so hard the witch fell backward flat on her bum.

Losing control momentarily of her hold on the three, Merlin and Arthur both took the opportunity to throw themselves on top of her, keeping her on the ground. Merlin raised his own hand to her face, his expression more violent that Essie's.

Alexis stared at them, her expression still dead, before another smile crept onto her face. Slowly, she started to laugh right into their faces.

"What are you going to do?" she continued to laugh, "_Burn me? _And risk killing this girl along with me? Are you _truly _capable of doing so, warlock?"

Merlin stared into her black pupils before telling her firmly, "Oh, no. Not you. Your source of power, however- NOW, ARTHUR!"

Arthur, who had caught his sword as Essie had flung it to him before, raised it and stabbed the prime elder tree right into the heart of it- the symbol of the Old Religion.

The witch screamed, her shrill shriek hoarse and brutal. A beam of light erupted from her heart, enveloping her slowly and completely.

"YOU WILL FALL!" she screamed, "THE GODS WILL HAVE YOU!"

Merlin let go as she writhed, standing back next to Arthur and Essie, looking on in disgust.

Eventually, the light died out as did the screams, and all that was left was the small broken figure of Alexis, completely free of the witch. Her breathing was shallow.

The symbol on the tree had shined and disappeared as well, leaving the Elder Tree as it was- just an ordinary tree. Essie supposed that the witch was truly gone.

Arthur went over and scooped the thin girl into his arms, handing the sword to Essie, which was dripping with a dark black liquid Merlin guessed was the blood of the witch herself.

"Your sword," panted Essie, looking at it in dumbfounded admiration, "it was equivalent to killing her with burning coals."

"It was forged in the breath of a dragon," answered Merlin quietly, examining Alexis closely. She would live, for sure. She probably wouldn't even remember anything.

"The equivalent of a thousand fire storms," agreed Arthur, his expression hard to read as he stared at it as well.

"So are we, like, Hunters now?"

Hey had just arrived back home, after dropping Alexis off at the hospital and informing her older sister, who was hysterical over her sudden disappearance earlier. They had also made more of the theoretical antidote and fed it to the little girl and boy. They were close to death by then. Luckily, the moment the medicine had touched their lips their condition got better, to the amazement of the doctors who looked on with stony expressions.

"Hunters?" groaned Arthur in response to Essie, "hardly."

"No, not like animal hunters, the sort of Hunters like in- never mind," she sighed, as they all dropped onto the couch, which let out a loud creak.

"So we just stopped an evil witch- was this your normal agenda?" asked Essie. Merlin snickered.

"For me it was," he replied, "Arthur thought so too, but I was doing all the hard work."

"Excuse you," said Arthur, as Essie stifled a laugh at his expense, "But I did _quite _a lot of saving in my day. I was the King, after all."

"Yeah, okay, is everyone forgetting about my shining moment?" interjected Essie, looking both of them on either side of her. Arthur laughed.

"Yes, I especially loved the, er, what was it? '_Barkface' _did you call her?" he snickered. Essie huffed.

"I was in the moment!" she whined, punching him in the arm playfully. Arthur merely rolled his eyes.

Merlin sat watching them bicker from the side, smiling vacantly. They both looked over at him.

"What do you reckon, Granddad?" she questioned, recognizing the expression. It was one of deep thought.

Merlin shrugged, before saying, "what Elder Mother said, it bothers me."

"What does?"

"What she told Arthur directly," he replied, "the _ancient spirit returning_ and such."

There was a long silence as they all recalled.

Arthur pondered before he said, "it sounded like some sort of rehearsed prophecy, I think."

Essie groaned, "That's never a good thing in anything I've read."

"_He who blindly destroys himself, has returned from the world he dreamt about in his living days. He will take hold of his destined vessel and continue his work anew, ripping this world apart in his vain attempt to escape it,_" repeated Merlin, his eyes distant.

"How did you even remember-?"

"I was the assistant of a physician, I'm supposed to have a good memory," he answered vacantly. Essie nodded to this, as Arthur thought about it as well.

"Who would want to rip the world apart though?" he sighed. Essie merely observed the both of them, her excitement starting to wear off.

"I'm sure it isn't anything," said Merlin suddenly, shrugging and getting up. He fell back into his arm chair, leaving Arthur and Essie confused as to why he would abandon it so quickly.

Arthur, however, caught on. Now wasn't the time to speak of it, with Essie jumping around the both of them like an over excited puppy. The two men would discuss it later.

"Alright then," agreed Essie quickly, also getting up, "I'm going to go wash off. I recommend you both do so as well, before you stain my furniture."

Merlin and Arthur both nodded, as Essie skipped off upstairs.

Their expressions both turned serious, as they looked to each other expectantly.

"Are you alright?" said Merlin quietly to his old friend. Arthur nodded.

"I'm in better shape than you, old man."

They both smiled briefly.

"What do you reckon?" asked Arthur, mimicking Essie's modern diction. Merlin shook his head slowly, his eyes dropping to the floor as he touched his fingers together.

"I think," he said quietly, without looking up, "is that we are all in very grave danger."

**TO BE CONTINUED, IN THE NEXT INSTALLMENT OF THE ARTHUR RETURNS AU SERIES:**

_**THE SPIRITS OF THE LAKE: **_ s/10648571/1/Spirits-of-the-Lake

**Do review!**


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